The House of Representatives is pushing for the institutionalization of the Conditional Matching Grants Program (CMGP).
The House Committee on Public Works this week approved House Bill 604, authored by Cong. Edgar Chatto along with Cong. Christian Tell Yap and Cong. Eddie Villanueva.
The measure seeks to repair, rehabilitate, and improve core provincial roads and bridges, and provide assistance to Provincial Governments in developing and enriching their capacities in local road management through coaching, mentoring, trainings, and workshops, as well as in developing and introducing road management systems and tools.
Its capacity development component will ensure that provincial local governments with the capability and resources for good quality road projects and ensure their development and maintenance.
Chatto was named head of the Technical Working Group for the bill.
CMGP had been developed from the local road reforms program Konkreto at Ayos na Lansangan ang Daan Tungo sa Pangkalahatang Kaunlaran or KALSADA that was launched in Bohol in 2016.
When Chatto was governor, he pushed for the KALSADA program through the League of Provinces of the Philippines, with the strong support of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the National Economic Development Authority and the Department of Budget and Management. The allocation for the program was thus included in the Congress budget approved by the president.
KALSADA was patterned after the Australian Government assisted Provincial Road Management Facility (PRMF) piloted in Bohol.
It comprised aspects of good governance through local road management, rehabilitation and upgrading of provincial roads and turning over maintenance to the Provincial Government, development of a Provincial Road Network Development Plan, and establishment of city and provincial locational referencing system for baseline data purposes.
In Bohol, CMGP projects included crucial provincial roads such as Dimiao-Oac Road, Poblacion (Carmen)-Vallehermoso Road in Carmen, Pilar-Bagacay Road, Poblacion (Cortes)-Junction (Corella), Maribojoc-Pagnitoan-Candavid-Tabuan Basak Road, Alegria (Catigbian)-Baang-Jagbuaya-Janopol Road, Alburquerque-Sikatuna Road and (Buenavista) Bonotbonot-Tiguman-Overland Road all implemented and completed between 2017-2021.
Chatto explained that the bill seeks to completely and continuously fill the investment and capacity gap in national-local roads connectivity, in recognition of the local road network as a vital component for local and nationwide socio-economic progress, and to address perennial issue of local government units on where to source the fund for road construction, improvement, and maintenance.