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By Darwin G. Amojelar Reporter
MANILA and Seoul have signed a
loan agreement for the years 2007 to 2009 to fund priority
infrastructure projects, the National Economic and Development
Authority (NEDA) said.
The NEDA said the Economic
Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) of the Export-Import Bank of
Korea approved the $300-million multiyear assistance to the
Philippines.
The total commitment may be
adjusted by a written arrangement between the two governments.
The Korea’s EDCF will extend a
loan amounting to $25.14 million for the Quirino Higway project,
$9.8-million assistance for the Bacolod City Silay road, and $51.9
million for the Northrail-Southrail Linkage Project Phase II.
The Korea’s EDCF extends loans
such as funding of feasibility studies and detailed design. The
loans carry 1-percent to 5-percent annual interest rates with
0.1-percent service charge on total disbursements and 30 years
maturity inclusive of 10 years grace period.
Under the Korean International
Cooperation Agency’s (KOICA) budget plan from 2006 to 2009, about
$20 million to $30 million a year is allotted to the Philippines.
The KOICA provides grants in the
form of project aid, technical training, and dispatch of medical
doctors. The priority sectors of assistance are agriculture,
fishery, human resource development through information
communication and technology, transportation infrastructure
development, energy resource management, environmental protection
and Mindanao development in the fields of public health care and
education.
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