The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will fund the 53.1-kilometer Malolos-Clark Railway Project or MCRP, the government announced last week.
Worth US$1.45 billion, the MCRP is part of the 163-kilometer North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR), a major infrastructure project of the government to provide safe, reliable, and eco-friendly transport connecting Luzon provinces to Metro Manila.
The newly approved loan is the second and final tranche of its MCRP financing facility secured by the national government.
In 2019, ADB approved the first tranche of financing for the project amounting to USD$.3 billion.
ADB Philippines Country Director Pavit Ramachandran said the MCRP is one of bank's biggest financing projects in the Asia and Pacific region.
“We are proud to partner with the government in making the vision of a world-class mass transportation system in the country a reality. This major transformative project will spur more investments, create jobs, and contribute to sustaining the country’s growth momentum,” he said.
Ramachandran added that ADB is eyeing to finance some US$4 billion for Philippine infrastructure, healthcare, food security, and the blue economy projects this year.
These include the US$400-million Walang Gutom (Zero Hunger) Program under the Reducing Food Insecurity and Undernutrition with Electronic Vouchers (REFUEL) Project, the US$400-million Marine Ecosystems for Blue Economy Development Program, and the US$300-million Accelerating Expansion and Sustainability of Health Services for Universal Health Care (ACCESS UHC).