LEGAZPI CITY—The government will jump-start and complete this year mobilization activities for the rehabilitation program of the Bicol River Basin (BRB) as it awaits approval by the World Bank (WB) of the proposed P3.3-billion funding assistance.

The mobilization activities would include hiring people who will oversee the rehabilitation works and the establishment of a project management office and construction of required facilities here, Vicente Tuddao Jr., the executive director of the River Basin Control Office, said.

The Department of Budget and Management, that pledged P100 million, would provide financing for these preliminary activities.

The Departments of Public Works and Highways and Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), as well as the National Irrigation Administration have also committed P33 million each, Tuddao said.

The National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) had already approved the project, including these funding requirements and the P3.3-billion assistance from the WB is expected to come anytime by the middle of this year, he said.

Authorities have already prepared memoranda of agreement between the DENR and agencies concerned so that mechanics for disbursing such fund can be established, Tuddao said.

President Arroyo had identified as priority project the rehabilitation of BRB, whose area is about 3,771 square kilometers of the Bicol Peninsula covering the typhoon-ravaged provinces of Albay, Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte.

The area features a chain of volcanoes and one of them, Mt. Mayon in Albay, is considered the most destructive in the country. In November 2006, millions of tons of volcanic debris from its slopes killed hundreds of people, buried thousands of houses, leveled vast farmlands and destroyed billions of pesos worth of infrastructure at the height of Typhoon Reming.

The debris was part of the huge volume of lava, lahar, sand and boulders emitted by the volcano during previous eruptions.

DAVAO CITY—The National Transmission Corp. (Transco) here believes that the completion of the P3-billion transmission project connecting Maramag in Bukidnon to Bunawan in Davao City will ease the anxiety of a supposed power crisis in this southern Philippine island in a couple of years.

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) is set to undertake a survey of irrigated lands that were converted into nonagricultural uses all over the Philippines.

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Undersecretary Virgilio Leyretana, Mindanao Economic Development Council (Medco) chairman, announced that the completion of infrastructure development projects under the Mindanao Super Region is underway.

CEBU CITY—The Port of Cebu is confident the volume of imports would pick up in 2008 to compensate for the declining value of the dollar and the stoppage of operations of one of its biggest importer in late 2007.

LEGAZPI CITY—The government will jump-start and complete this year mobilization activities for the rehabilitation program of the Bicol River Basin (BRB) as it awaits approval by the World Bank (WB) of the proposed P3.3-billion funding assistance.

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—Total investments in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone now stand at $5.43 billion after 164 new business locators committed $1.668 billion worth of investment projects last year.