PHL seeks extension for $4-M World Bank loan financing Bangsamoro bases transformation

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THE PHILIPPINES is seeking a four-month extension for the $4-million project loan from the World Bank to transform former separatist guerilla bases into economic engines for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The extension requests seek a new closing date of June 30 from the original Feb. 28.

The Bangsamoro Camps Transformation Project will assist the development of six former Moro Islamic Liberation Front camps “with the aim of transforming them into peaceful and productive communities.”

In the proposed extension, “project-level implementation schedule and budget estimates will also be revised by (implementing agency) Community and Family Services International (CFSI),” the World Bank said in a document uploaded to its website.

The adjusted closing date are expected to allow the project to meet its set targets and project development objective, it said.

The loan was initially approved on June 21, 2023.

“CFSI and the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) will use this extension period to go beyond reporting outputs and focus on measuring and documenting the early outcomes of BCTP interventions,” the World Bank said. — Aubrey Rose A. Inosante