[vc_row full_width=”stretch_row” equal_height=”yes” cspt-responsive-css=”13014940|colbreak_no|||||||||colbreak_yes|||||||||colbreak_no||||||||||colbreak_no|||||||||” el_class=”header-title” css=”.vc_custom_1615584142705{margin-bottom: 40px !important;}”][vc_column cspt-extended-column=”left” width=”1\/2″ cspt-responsive-css=”69549645|colbreak_no|||||||||colbreak_no|||||150||150||colbreak_no||||||||||colbreak_no|||||||||” css=”.vc_custom_1615583979260{padding-top: 300px !important;padding-right: 50px !important;padding-bottom: 30px !important;background-color: #5c86c0 !important;}”][vc_row_inner equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/4″][vc_single_image image=”11406″ img_size=”full” css=”.vc_custom_1618860162343{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”3\/4″][vc_custom_heading text=”The New Centennial Water Source-Kaliwa Dam Project (NCWS-KDP)” font_container=”tag:h1|font_size:40px|text_align:left|color:%23ffffff|line_height:45px” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=”.vc_custom_1618860168292{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][vc_column cspt-bg-image-color-order=”image-over-color” cspt-extended-column=”right” width=”1\/2″ cspt-responsive-css=”91835201|colbreak_no|||||||||colbreak_no||||||||15|colbreak_no||||||||||colbreak_no|||||||||” css=”.vc_custom_1620256002448{margin-top: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 0px !important;padding-top: 40px !important;padding-right: 30px !important;padding-bottom: 40px !important;padding-left: 30px !important;background-image: url(http:\/\/103.18.247.248\/~sample\/bri_monitor\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/kaliwa-dam-project.png?id=12125) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_tta_tabs spacing=”20″ active_section=”1″ el_class=”bri-tabbing”][vc_tta_section title=”I. Project Summary” tab_id=”1614655868545-c561da9a-c081″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
The New Centennial Water Source-Kaliwa Dam Project (NCWS-KDP) is listed as one of the banner projects under the \u2018Build, Build, Build\u2019 program. It aims to supply 600 million liters of water per day and benefit some 17.46 million people or about 3.49 million households of Metro Manila, Rizal and Quezon to reduce the current 97% dependence on the Angat Dam. The said dam is located in the municipalities of General Nakar and Infanta in the province of Quezon and the municipality of Teresa in the province of Rizal. The project is estimated to cost P18.7 billion, of which P12.2 billion is funded by China\u2019s Official Development Assistance. The five-year project was scheduled for construction from 2019 to 2023 by the China Energy Engineering Corporation Limited (CEEC).<\/p>\n
NCWS-KDP is a project that has been on and off in the government\u2019s major infrastructure list. The project has had a long history of proposals from the Philippine government dating back to the 1970s. It has not taken off the ground primarily because of issues relating to the environment and its socio-cultural implications. Initially, the dams were built in stages and under different financial schemes. Subsequently, the Duterte administration pursued the bigger, China-funded NCWS-KDP. A report in August 2020 mentions that \u201cconstruction of the access road leading to the planned reservoir in General Nakar town in Quezon is underway\u201d.<\/p>\n
The NCWS-KDP will be funded from a combination of a loan agreement under an ODA from China and from the regular budget of the Philippine government. According to official statements, 85% of the project cost, or about P12.2 billion, will be financed by the Export-Import Bank of China (CEXIM) under the Preferential Buyer\u2019s Credit Loan Agreement on the NCWS-KDP. The project contractor is China Energy Engineering Corporation (CEEC). The project was initially planned to be financed under a public-private partnership, however, data indicates that only 11% of the projects, representing 4.5% of the total costs of the BBB program, are actually financed by PPPs.<\/p>\n
The involvement of China in the project funding led to a petition before the Supreme Court asking for a declaration of the loan agreement illegal and void. But, Velasco asserts that the NCWS-KDP is a \u201cdone deal\u201d despite the consultations that the MWSS has been portraying in public. The administration of Duterte appears determined to implement the NCWS-KDP project despite the opposition to the project.<\/p>\n
[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”II. Project Structure” tab_id=”1614655868558-673461d2-624a”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) is the implementing agency of the project and a national government agency of the Philippines. CEXIM financed approximately 85% of the project costs under the Preferential Buyer\u2019s Credit Loan Agreement on the NCWS-KDP and CEEC functions as the project contractor. Both CEXIM and CEEC are owned by the state of China. Listed as consultants to CEED is EDCOP-PRIMEX-SMEC. EDCOP is short for the Engineering and Development Corporation of the Philippines, an engineering consultancy firm founded in 1955. PRIMEX is a real estate company founded in 1986. Lastly, SMEC is a consultancy services company headquartered in Australia.<\/p>\n
[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”III. Issues” tab_id=”1618452537450-6e206883-c36f”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
There are three main categories of concern regarding the impact of NCWS-KDP: the environmental impact, the sociocultural impact on the region, and the project\u2019s financial terms. In regards to environmental impact, several groups have expressed opposition to the NCWS-KDP. In granting the Environmental Compliance Certificate, the government downplayed the threat of a big flood in case of structural damage to the dam that may be caused by an earthquake, stating that there are no active faults in the immediate vicinity of the dam.<\/p>\n
In terms of sociocultural impact, NCWS-KDP threatens to displace up to 10,000 members of the Dumagat-Remontado indigenous people who live in the project area. These Dumagat communities depend on farming for most of their income, and the loss of their farmland leaves their economic future uncertain. The site is also the location of the Dumagat people\u2019s sacred sites. Conversely, the government claims that only 46 families stand to be affected by the project.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, there are political issues in regards to the project\u2019s finance and governance. The contracts entered into with China put the Philippines at a significant disadvantage based on the interest rates. The loan agreement also waives sovereign immunity, the confidentiality clause, and the arbitration terms. The level of transparency accorded by the government to the public is, at best, perfunctory. Pursuing leads to information about the Kaliwa Dam Project led to dead-ends or conflicting information, most of the time.<\/p>\n
[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”IV. Transparency Assessment” tab_id=”1614655896696-2d7fad11-0659″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n