The Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH) said Sunday that construction activities nationwide will be in full swing due to the favorable weather condition.

DPWH Undersecretary for Luzon Romeo Momo said they are taking advantage of the dry spell to work actively while employing farmers affected by El Niño in their ongoing road projects.

“We see this as an opportunity to work 24/ 7 so that we can finish the 30 percent construction backlog last year brought by (recent) typhoons,” Momo said.

“Even though there can be no goods to be transported due to drought , the bright side is we can push with our infrastructure works forward because of the good weather. It's one way towards improving the (country's) economy,” he added.

The DPWH said that before the dry spell, workers found it hard to repair damaged infrastructure and finish President Arroyo's SoNA (State of the Nation Address) projects whose programmed completion has been dragged until June.

They also need to complete flood control projects, some of them were severely destroyed by typhoons “Pepeng” and “Ondoy” and undergo clearing of dikes and canals.

Momo said that the ongoing infra projects will allow them to hire unskilled, skilled, and highly technical workers while helping farmers affected by El Niño to secure jobs in the road and bridge construction.

“Our major thrust for this year is to finish these SoNA projects which already posted 75 percent to 80 percent completion,” he added.

So far, the Northern Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle (NLAQ), Urban Luzon Beltway, Central Philippines-Tourism, and Agribusiness Mindanao are among DPWH major infrastructure projects.

The agency was able to construct and improve 47,773 kilometers of roads, 289,944 linear meters of bridges, and more than 102,000 classrooms as well as 294,000 government housing units in recent years.

Since last year, it has also doubled its efforts to fast-track rural water and flood control projects nationwide which includes the Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement Project, the Camanava Flood Control and Drainage Project, among others.