{
  "id": 16496215,
  "title": "DA eyes PPP for P80 billion farm-to-market roads",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/25/da-eyes-ppp-for-p80-billion-farm-to-market-roads",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-25T16:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Philippine Star Business",
    "slug": "philippine-star-business",
    "url": "https://www.philstar.com/business/2026/10/26/2565640/da-eyes-ppp-p80-billion-farm-market-roads"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Department of Agriculture (DA) in the Philippines is considering placing approximately P80 billion worth of farm-to-market roads (FMR) under public-private partnership (PPP) arrangements. The initiative aims to accelerate the construction of rural farm roads. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. mentioned the potential involvement of the World Bank and the International Finance Corp. in establishing a PPP system for the country's farm roads. Laurel Jr. explained that if eligible companies can be found, private-sector financing would help fund these projects, with the government repaying them over time. The government's primary goal is to expedite the implementation of FMRs nationwide. Laurel Jr. emphasized that regions with high poverty rates, where residents have abundant produce but lack access due to poor road infrastructure, would benefit significantly from improved roads. He added that these projects would complement the P33 billion already allocated under the agency's 2026 budget for FMRs, with plans to construct 2,300 kilometers of farm roads, divided into 1,605 projects for the year. Construction for FMRs is expected to commence by December this year for projects funded by the 2026 budget. Bidding for FMR projects was previously halted as the DA took over construction and implementation responsibilities from the Department of Public Works and Highways. For 2027, the DA received a P16 billion budget for farm roads, but Agriculture Secretary Laurel Jr. stated that this amount falls short of the agency's goal of P55,000 kilometers of farm roads.",
  "summary": "The Department of Agriculture (DA) is looking to place about P80 billion worth of farm-to-market roads (FMR) under public-private partnership (PPP) to hasten the construction of farm roads in rural areas.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}