RDC XI seeks 2027 funds for Mindanao Railway study, welcomes possible Japanese funding

Mindanao's regional development council chairs are lobbying for the long-stalled Mindanao Railway Project (MRP) to receive funding in the 2027 national budget, and are open to Japanese financing, according to Mindanao Times.

Davao del Norte Governor Edwin Jubahib, who chairs the Regional Development Council (RDC) XI, said the chairs are asking the Department of Budget and Management to include the feasibility study for all four project segments in the 2027 General Appropriations Act. He spoke on the sidelines of the Mindanao Development Forum at Dusit Thani Hotel in Davao City on Tuesday, Oct. 27.

Jubahib said the feasibility study and land acquisition had both started earlier but were interrupted. "Kailangan lang itong ma-continue," he said, meaning the work simply needs to continue. For now, he said, the national government can only release funds for the feasibility study and land acquisition. The council hopes the full project budget can be implemented by 2028.

Two phases are to be prioritised: Phase 1, running from Tagum City through Davao City to Digos City, and Phase 3, from Cagayan de Oro City to Misamis Occidental. Jubahib said the RDC chairs agreed that work in northern Mindanao should start alongside Phase 1 so that development is balanced between the south and the north.

On foreign interest, Jubahib said Japan has so far been mentioned as an interested country. He said Davao City Mayor Sebastian "Baste" Duterte has been the one in contact with the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and that the council respects this and would welcome any country willing to fund the project. Japanese Consul General to Davao Ono Hirotaka earlier said Japan is open to funding the MRP if the Philippine government requests it, Mindanao Times reported.

Mindanao Development Authority Secretary Leo Magno said his agency continues to look for private-sector investment. He said the MRP is divided into 13 segments, with feasibility studies for Segments 1 and 3 nearing completion and some segments open to unsolicited proposals from private investors. He put the cost of Phase 1 at more or less P81 billion and Phase 3 at around P100 billion.

The planned 1,544-kilometer railway system would link Davao, General Santos, Cagayan de Oro, Iligan, Cotabato, Zamboanga, Butuan, Surigao and Malaybalay.