SUPPLY OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS PUSHED

The government has been asked to ensure the supply of quality construction materials for its Build Build Build projects as well as hike financial assistance to farmers as part of economic revival efforts, according to the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

These were among the key points of recommendations that the private sector proposed to the government during a virtual Sulong Pilipinas forum aimed at smoking out the problems of the country in connection with its push to reenergize the economy.

Substandard construction materials have been raised over and over again due to the challenging environment that the government agencies face in enforcing strict standards on construction materials ranging from bars to roofing items.

To better address the adequate supply of quality construction materials in line with the ‘Build Build Build’ program, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) must work together with manufacturers and importers of construction materials and craft a long-term plan to balance trade to achieve cost-effective targets by August 2021, according to the private sector's recommendation.

Also, the increase in financial assistance to farmers, strengthening education’s focus on science and technology (S&T), and integrating government portals and services to make transactions easier amid the COVID-19 pandemic were among the Top 10 actionable recommendations submitted by the private sector at this year’s first virtual Sulong Pilipinas forum.

The recommendations covered the areas of health, transportation, infrastructure, social protection, human capital development, agriculture, digitalization, and communications.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, who received the Top 10 recommendations, said at the end of the event that the national government (NG) will consider these “and do our best to achieve most of them within the remaining period of President Duterte’s term.”

Around 670 representatives from the private sector took part in the “Sulong Pilipinas 2021: Partners for Progress Forum held on April 26 via Zoom, while more than 44,000 people watched the livestream of the event on the Facebook pages of Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM) and the government agencies of the Economic Development (EDC) and Infrastructure (IC) Cabinet Clusters.

The online conference also served as a venue for the pre-State of the Nation Address (SONA) reports of the EDC chaired by Dominguez and the IC Cabinet Clusters led by Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar.

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