By:
Ronnel W. Domingo - 05:14 AM August 29, 2019
Bringing electricity
for the first time to households in remote areas may not proceed as fast as is
desirable with the National Electrification Administration (NEA) getting only a
fourth of the funding it needs to finish the job.
Even then, NEA
Administrator Edgardo Masongsong said in a statement the agency would strive to
meet its target of total electrification by 2022.
Of the 14,876 sitios,
or hamlets, that have never gotten a taste of electricity services, the NEA can
energize 775 with the allocation indicated in the 2020 National Expenditure
Program (NEP) that Malacañang submitted to the House of Representatives
committee on appropriations on Tuesday.
Data from the NEA
showed that bringing electricity to these sitios requires P22 billion in
funding.
The NEA submitted to
the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) a funding proposal of at least
P6.146 billion for next year to bankroll the government’s various
electrification projects, including the Sitio Electrification Program (SEP) and
Barangay Line Enhancement Program. However, the agency said, the DBM
recommended only P1.53 billion.
“The NEA and [electric
cooperatives] will remain steadfast in their commitment, despite all odds, to
make possible the total electrification target, providing in effect a platform
for the government to draw rural people into the economic and social mainstream
and vigorously pursue its goal of inclusive growth,” Masongsong said.
Based on the NEP
pending in Congress, electrification projects are allocated P1.53 billion.
Masongsong said a big
portion of this amount was dedicated to the continued implementation of the SEP
Phase 2 at P1.16 billion.
No comments:
Post a Comment