Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) Diplomat for Development Cooperation Andrew Egan and First Secretary John Alikpala stopped by Xavier during their provincial visit to Misamis Oriental for a discussion on the Australian Government’s aid program in the Philippines particularly the Provincial Road Management Facility (PRMF).
PRMF focuses on road rehabilitation and maintenance to ensure a year-round reliable road network that will reduce transportation costs for farmers and local businesses, and improve peoples’ access to social services like health and education. XU Engineering students, through the Engineering Resource Center, have been assisting the PRMF in conducting road condition surveys.

Egan, who presented the program to an audience composed of the academe and civil society organizations, said that the PRMF provides a base program of AUD1 million each year to partner provinces. Furthermore, PRMF uses incentives in the form of additional revenues to encourage provinces to reach their reform targets. Egan also stressed that the program considers factors that underpin sustainability such as audit/internal controls, human resource management and development, procurement/contracting out, multi-year planning linked to budgets, and revenue generation.

Several members of the audience expressed concern on the accountability and transparency of the implementation of the program. Egan responded that PRMF is a development partnership that uses local government systems and processes that meet minimum fiduciary and transparency standards. Misamis Oriental Provincial Governor Oscar Moreno who was also present during the event pointed out that the people should trust the government for programs like the PRMF to work.

Since 2005 Australia’s aid to the Philippines has doubled to AUD 120 million or about P5 billion, comprising about one-third of one percent of the country’s total economic pie.