With or without a railway system, Western Visayas ready to steam ahead

BY LOUINE HOPE U. CONSERVA

BUSINESS LEADERS in Western Visayas remain hopeful of one day seeing a railway system chug through the region’s mainland, Panay.

Understanding the cost of such an undertaking, they bear no ill-feelings for the President, who mentioned the possibility of reviving Panay Railways during his first State of the Nation Address in July 2016, even though it was later excluded from the priority list for its “Golden Age of Infrastructure.”

As a result, although the project may no longer get the government’s full support, it could still be pursued through a public-private partnership, Iloilo Business Club Executive Director Lea E. Lara said.

“It entails a huge cost which would need an investment from a private partner,” she said in an interview.

Cesar S. Capellan, director of state-run Panay Railways, Inc., the firm that used to operate the 117-kilometer railway in the 1980s, earlier said that a Chinese firm has expressed interest to conduct a new feasibility for the project.

Ms. Lara said a thorough study would definitely be needed, particularly on the return on investment.

“If the revenue will solely depend on passenger fees without cargo, it will not be cost-effective to investors. It should be complemented by agricultural produce… It becomes a white elephant if we cannot sustain it,” she said.

The retired railway — which was constructed starting back in 1907 and closed down in 1983 — used to transport agricultural produce and other cargo within Panay Island, composed of the provinces of Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Iloilo, and the city of Iloilo.

Ms. Lara said the business sector would like to see improved access between Iloilo City, the commercial and political center of Western Visayas, to other provinces to level economic development across the region.

“Anything that can improve the travel time would incredibly help. Having the railway would cut your travel time from four hours to only about 30 minutes to one hour,” she said.

Dona Rose O. Ratilla, president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (PCCI) Iloilo chapter, agrees that rehabilitating the railway would bring down transport cost and improve logistics, which would then motivate the agricultural sector.

“Farmers will be encouraged to produce more since they will have bigger markets,” Ms. Ratilla said, adding that PCCI-Iloilo is willing to pass a resolution expressing support to pursue the project.

“While there is still no definite plan for it, the concept of having it is there and we look forward to that. We also passed a resolution before in support of the Jalaur megadam,” she told BusinessWorld.

BEYOND BORACAY

Ms. Ratilla also said that a cheaper, faster and more convenient means of transport as provided by a rail system would give Panay provinces better opportunity to share in the tourists attracted by popular island destination Boracay, located off the mainland’s northwestern tip.

Western Visayas — which has a 5.5 million arrivals target this year, up from the actual 5.193 million tourists recorded in 2016 that brought in P114 billion in tourism receipts — has hit the two-million-visitor mark in the first half of 2017, based on partial data from the Department of Tourism’s regional office (DoT-6).

Aklan, including Boracay, continued to be the most visited province with 1.1 million tourists from January to June, followed by Iloilo City with 410,061 from January to May, and Bacolod City with 269,232 in the first four months.

However, Antique, which is adjacent to Panay and has diverse nature attractions, had just 43,277 tourists from January to March.

“DoT Region 6 takes into consideration these numbers because this is where we align our tourism products and services to make Western Visayas one destination with diverse culture,” said DoT-6 Regional Director Helen J. Catalbas, adding that campaigns are directed towards promoting areas that Boracay’s crowd could look into.

Antique Governor Rhodora J. Cadiao, also the chairperson of the Regional Development Council (RDC)-Western Visayas, said she, likewise, continues to look forward to having a railway in Panay.

“The train would be able to service even the far-flung areas in Antique,” she said.

Western Visayas’ gross regional domestic product (GRDP) growth rate slowed down to 6.1% in 2016 from 8.3% in 2015, the second fastest that year.

The deceleration in 2016 is attributed mainly to a drop in the agriculture, hunting, and fishery sector’s performance, which DoT’s Ms. Catalbas said also has an impact on the tourism sector.

Ms. Catalbas said a broad review of data indicates that the net income from the 2016 tourism receipts could have been higher if dining establishments were able to source more local raw supply.

“This is money spent on products that came from outside Western Visayas,” she added.

Under the Western Visayas Regional Development Plan for 2017-2022, the end-period GRDP target growth rate is 9.8% to 11%. Among the main strategies to achieve this is expanding agri-fishery production, developing tourism circuits and destinations, and enhancing public infrastructure efficiency.

HIGHWAYS VS. RAILS

Iloilo Governor Arthur D. Defensor, Sr., meanwhile, pointed out that a feasibility study on the railway undertaken during the time of President Fidel V. Ramos indicated that the project would not be viable.

Highway-widening projects from Iloilo to Capiz continue to be undertaken, he said.

Nonetheless, he added, it would be worth finding out the real score through another formal assessment.

“I hope they can find ways to make these projects viable,” he said.

National Economic and Development Authority Western Visayas Regional Director Ro-Ann A. Bacal, for her part, said the construction of an expressway, instead of a railway, is being considered.

“We started talking to business groups and they expressed apprehensions on the multiple handling cost when it comes to the railway. They are thinking of an elevated expressway from Iloilo to Capiz,” she said.

Ms. Bacal stressed that various ideas are in the “conceptual stage” and will be undergoing brainstorming within the regional and national levels.

“We’ve been asking our representatives in Congress and even the local leaders on their thoughts about the idea of having an expressway or railway,” she said.

In the meantime, three big-ticket projects in Western Visayas have been listed under the administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program: the Iloilo International Airport improvement amounting to P30.4 billion; Panay-Guimaras-Negros Island Bridge worth P27.156 billion; and the Panay River Basin Integrated Development Project in Capiz with a budget of P19.3 billion.

Ms. Bacal said the government is committed to implement these projects, possibly finish before the end of the Duterte administration, as they are considered “critical to make sure that the goals, objectives and target of PDP (Philippine Development Plan) are achieved.”

And for now, Panay’s community is looking forward to seeing these promised infrastructure get off the ground.

Louine Hope U. Conserva is BusinessWorld’s Mindanao correspondent.