For farm-to-market road (FMR) subprojects implemented under the Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP), World Bank Task Team Leader Frauke Jungbluth said “there’s no special World Bank road that one can refer to.”

This was Jungbluth’s response when asked about the life expectancy of FMR subprojects implemented under the PRDP during the Press Conference for the 3^rd World Bank Implementation Support Mission held in Kalinga on November 14, 2016.

“The design is meant to last for a long time but I think what PRDP tries to do is improve planning and improve execution together,” she added.

Within the implementation of infrastructure subprojects under the I-BUILD component of the PRDP, science-based tools and innovations such as the geomapping, geotagging and the results-based monitoring and evaluation management and information system (RBME MIS) are being utilized specifically in the monitoring and inspection of subprojects.

With these tools, it is now convenient for the central office and other agencies to see the progress of projects without going the actual site.

In addition, Jungbluth said that there is a joint team from the national, cluster and regional offices of which subprojects are inspected and monitored to ensure that these are being implemented as per PRDP guidelines.

Among other issues discussed during the press conference includes the deciding policy for proposed PRDP subprojects, expectations in the agriculture sector with PRDP interventions, and the economic impact of PRDP among others. (Elvy S. Taquio, CARPCO InfoACE Unit)