The Philippine government is moving to complete more than $10 billion worth of concessional financing agreements with Japan, South Korea, and France by next year, as it expands its pipeline of official development assistance (ODA) loans.
Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go said discussions are underway for a total of 25 loan agreements from the three partner countries. “What’s obvious to us now are actually 10 official development assistance (ODA) loans from Japan, 10 pipeline loans from Korea, and five loans from France,” Go told reporters on Feb. 26 during a Social Security System event.
The Department of Finance projects that the Japanese component alone will amount to 371.3 billion yen, equivalent to roughly ₱139.1 billion, with deals expected to be finalized through the first quarter of 2027.
Beyond bilateral partners, Manila is also reopening negotiations with the Beijing-based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) after securing two project loans in 2025. Go confirmed he met AIIB officials on Feb. 26, adding that the bank is evaluating two proposed undertakings for 2026.
One of these is the Luzon Digital Connectivity project, estimated at $500 million, which would be implemented by the Department of Information and Communications Technology. Another under consideration is the $150-million Metro Manila Sponge City Project, designed to manage and retain floodwaters during extended periods of heavy rainfall.
“We’re still discussing with AIIB together with DICT and MMP,” the finance chief said, noting that the two initiatives are separate from another set of five to six projects also being reviewed. He characterized the government’s working relationship with the multilateral lender as strong.
AIIB had earlier extended $232.18 million in financing to support the administration’s “Build Better More” infrastructure agenda. Of that amount, $188.18 million funded Phase 1 of the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network, while $44 million was allocated as sovereign financing for the Facility for Accelerating Studies for Infrastructure projects.
Go clarified that those AIIB loans received the lender’s approval in 2024 and were subsequently cleared by the Philippine government in 2025.
Apart from loan financing, technical assistance launched in 2023 reached $18 million. Investments in private-sector firms, including Maynilad and Citicore Renewable Energy, totaled $104 million across 2024 and 2025.
As the country approaches upper middle-income classification under World Bank standards, Go said reliance on concessional financing is expected to decline. “We will be less reliant on concessional loans once the country moves into the upper middle-income classification of the World Bank,” he said.
In place of softer borrowing terms, the administration plans to broaden its funding mix. According to Go, the government intends to expand the use of public-private partnerships to bankroll large-scale programs in infrastructure, climate resilience, sustainability, energy, and agriculture.
He added that the passage of the PPP law two years ago and ongoing ease-of-doing-business reforms are intended to strengthen private-sector participation in these initiatives.
