THE need for roads, flood-control projects and other public infrastructure is becoming harder to ignore as extreme weather continues to test the country’s infrastructure, the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (Cemap) said.
Cemap President John Reinier Dizon said stronger government spending on public works is needed to address infrastructure gaps exposed by worsening weather conditions.
‘We do need construction and we need government to spend on public works. I don’t need to belabor that point,’ Dizon said in a televised interview.
‘Everyone feels that the need for better roads and what we’re experiencing with this climate that we’re having these days, it has to be addressed, the floods, et cetera,’ he added.
The call comes as cement demand remains subdued for much of the year. Dizon said construction activity declined by 14 percent in the second quarter, based on government data.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that the value of approved construction projects increased despite a 0.3-percent decline in the number of construction projects to 17,081 in the second quarter from 17,126 a year earlier.
The contraction was nevertheless slower than the 6.5-percent decline recorded in May.
Construction costs have also continued to rise. Wholesale prices of construction materials in Metro Manila accelerated in July, with cement prices increasing 1.9 percent year-on-year, faster than the 1.2-percent increase recorded a month earlier.
Government projects account for roughly 40 percent of cement and construction materials demand in the Philippines, per Cemap.
The timing of public spending is therefore critical for the industry, particularly as the country faces mounting infrastructure requirements from flooding and other weather-related risks.
They noted Public Works Secretary Vivencio Dizon’s efforts to address infrastructure gaps, saying the secretary is ‘also almost working 24 hours on that,’ referring to the need to improve roads amid current weather conditions.
The DPWH is seeking a P643.95-billion budget for 2027, about 20 percent higher than its allocation this year, according to its presentation before the House Committee on Appropriations in late August.
The proposed increase includes the return of locally funded flood-mitigation projects after the Executive department and Congress agreed to remove such allocations from the 2026 budget amid the flood-control controversy.
Cemap had earlier expected government agencies to begin releasing more infrastructure spending at the start of the third quarter, although Dizon acknowledged that stricter project implementation and budget-release procedures could affect the pace.
The outlook for cement demand, however, remains cautious. Dizon’s earlier projection that the industry could post flat to slightly negative growth this year remains in place, with the association still working to quantify the decline.