The government will implement P34 billion worth of foreign-assisted projects (FAP) next year, 12.84 percent more than 2009’s P30.13 billion.

Of the programmed FAPs, P10.4 billion is the counterpart funding and P23 billion are the loan proceeds while a smaller amount P318.8 million are in the form of grants, according to official government data.

Japan accounts for the largest of the FAPs with P11 billion but this is lower compared to that country’s P12.3-billion funded projects this year. The Japanese government lends support through Japan Export Import Bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Japan Bank International Cooperation which is implementing majority of the projects amounting to P10.7 billion.

France is second biggest source of funding assistance with P4.67 billion while the World Bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development is providing P4.66 billion next year. Active French credit agencies here are Calyon Credit Agricole and COFACE (Compagnie Francaise d'Assurances pour le Commerce Exterieur).

China is extending P2.52 billion next year from only P148 million this year while Korea and Finland through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (Korea) and the Finnish Concessional Credit will provide P2.49 billion and P2.17 billion, respectively.

The Asian Development Bank, one of the country’s biggest source of dollar-denominated program loans have FAPs worth P1.5 billion next year while Saudi Arabia and Spain also have FAPs amounting to P1.03 billion and P1 billion, respectively.

Bulk of FAPs or 85 percent are infrastructure-related. FAPs have appropriated counterpart funding. In the past, the government has had to cancel many FAPs because it could not provide the required counterpart financing.