P120-B road project pushed to pave growth of former 'no man's land'

From the Philippine News Agency (Mar 12, 2024): P120-B road project pushed to pave growth of former 'no man's land' (By Mary Judaline Partlow)

MUDDY ROAD. A vehicle gets stuck in the mud on the road leading to Tamlang Valley in Negros Oriental in this undated photo. The provincial government of Negros Oriental is pushing for a PHP 120-billion road network that would connect at least three towns to Tamlang Valley, once known as a no-man's land due to the communist insurgency. (PNA file photo by Mary Judaline Flores Partlow)

DUMAGUETE CITY – A PHP 120-billion project that would connect at least three towns in Negros Oriental to a former rebel-infested Tamlang Valley is seen to pave the way for progress and development, an official said Monday.

Alejandro Rafal, head of the Department of Agriculture-Provincial Agriculture Technology Coordinating Office (DA-PATCO) in Negros Oriental, told the Philippine News Agency Monday that the project has sought funding from the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP).

The multi-billion project includes two farm-to-market road networks connecting Barangay Datagon in Pamplona town to Barangay Dobdob in Valencia and from Sta. Catalina town to Dobdob.

The connecting road will pass through Tamlang Valley, once touted as a no-man’s land in the late ‘80s and early '90s at the height of the insurgency in the province, and is now being pushed for a massive agro-industrial development project.

The project scheme entails a 10 percent counterpart from the provincial government of PHP 12 billion, which the provincial government has promised to shell out, Rafal said.

The governor said the local counterpart is already available but what is being done now are preparatory works for submission to the PRDP.

The DA has already allocated PHP10 million for the conduct of the feasibility study.

Additionally, about 55 percent of the program of work and detailed engineering design have already been completed, Rafal said.

He added that the PRDP, a World Bank-supported project, aims to increase rural income and enhance farming and fisheries sectors.

On Monday, the province requested a re-orientation of the PRDP for a new Provincial Project Implementation Unit (PPIU).

Officials from the PRDP and DA in Region 7 were present during the meeting and re-orientation attended by the different offices and sectors comprising the PPIU, Rafal said.

The massive road network project for the development of Tamlang Valley is highly dependent on how fast the provincial government can comply with the PRDP’s requirements, he added.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1220536