TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan (PIA) - - The Regional Development Council - Region 2 (RDC-2), the inter-agency body in charge of ensuring the implementation of development programs in the Cagayan Valley, conducted field monitoring visits to six infrastructure projects in Cagayan province recently. 

The Regional Project Monitoring Committee (RPMC) of the RDC-2 inspected the ongoing construction of four public bridges, a bypass road, as well as the newly operational irrigation system in the town of Tuao. The said projects specifically include the Camalaniugan, Amulung, Itawes, and Pinacanauan Bridges, the Tuguegarao West Bypass Road, and the National Irrigation Administration’s Chico River Irrigation System (NIA-CRIS).

The monitoring team conducted meetings with the implementing agencies -- the Department of Public Works and Highways for the five transportation projects and the NIA, in order to elicit current and potential problems with regard to the construction and operation of the structures.

The objective of the RPMC is to consolidate all of the findings so that solutions to the said problems may be formulated by the government.

The construction of the bridges and bypass road is considered vital as they are projected upon completion to stimulate local economy by providing accessibility and ease of transportation to farmers, traders, motorists, tourists, including consumers of goods and social services like education and health. 

Two of these, the Tuguegarao West Bypass Road and the Pinacanauan Bridge are also expected to decongest the increasing traffic within the regional center of Cagayan Valley, Tuguegarao City according to the DPWH.

The NIA-CRIS, on the other hand, was already inauguration last year and is already providing irrigation to around 4,000 families in Cagayan and at least 1,000 in Kalinga.

The RPMC was composed of representatives from the National Economic and Development Authority, Presidential Management Staff, Department of Budget and Management, and Philippine Information Agency. (OTB/JKC/PIA Region 2)