MIF can finance 80 infra projects — Marcos
SAN FRANCISCO, California — The Maharlika Investment Fund, or MIF, has the potential to finance at least 80 infrastructure projects, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said here on Wednesday (US time).
Speaking at the Philippine Economic Briefing held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Marcos said he expects the MIF to play a pivotal role in financing critical infrastructure projects in the country.
“We look forward to (operationalizing) the Maharlika Investment Fund, the country’s firstever sovereign investment fund. It will serve as an additional source and mode of financing for priority projects of the government, including the infrastructure flagship,” Marcos told the businessmen in attendance.
“These projects offer high returns and significant social economic impacts. Currently, we have identified about 80 potential infrastructure projects that are financeable through the fund, the Maharlika Investment Fund,” he said.
National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, who was present at the economic briefing, said there are urban-based projects that are considered good candidates for MIF financing since these are “profitable.”
“Railways, tollways, airports — these are profitable. We didn’t say we’ll fund the railways, but it is possible through a public-private partnership,” said Balisacan in response to a question about potential MIF projects.
Balisacan said the MIF could potentially finance the rehabilitation of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, which is also considered a profitable project.
The MIF, Balisacan said, can finance the Mindanao railway project originally intended for China funding. It could be financed through the Official Development Assistance modality.
He said the MIF’s potential projects were selected based on their expected rates of return.
“Based on expected rates of return because Maharlika should have high returns so that... the goal is to secure funding through the fund so that we can allocate more resources for investment in industries,” he said.
One of Marcos’ main initiatives is the MIF, the first sovereign wealth fund in the Philippines.
The MIF aims to provide the country with stable investment funds to support job creation and economic expansion. Revenues from the MIF are intended to advance digitalization, energy, climate resilience, and agriculture in the Philippines.
To draw in international investment, the MIF will also be used for the major infrastructure development initiatives of the Marcos administration. The fund would support essential government initiatives to reduce the government’s budgetary burden while boosting revenue.