The construction of a new world-class airport in the city will depend upon the buy-in of large scale investors, an official from the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) says.
«The funding (for the airport) will be the fruit of a public-private partnership,» said Raymond Peter Esperat, MinDA’s Development Management Officer. «But we still have to look for investors.»
The initial estimated project cost is around Php9.87-Billion, a report from the City Government reveals.
This new airport to be sited 17 kilometers away from the city proper in barangay Mercedes-Talabaan is eyed to be world-class with state of the art facilities. International flights starting with Malaysia and Indonesia are to be expected with more passengers and cargo movements.
Local government officials believe that this new airport,when completed, will usher in more development opportunities, bring in more tourists and ease the traffic situation in the city proper.
Asked on a possible timeline for the completion of this project, Mr. Esperat said, «it’s too early to say.» Currently, a team of engineers from a private firm has been contracted to undertake a feasibility study of the project site.
Earlier this year, former Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the airport is expected to be completed within 4-5 years.
In addition to the airport, proposed projects that are seen to benefit the city include the construction of the Zamboanga Ecozone Port and the TransMindanao High Speed Railway System Project. But Esperat says the timeline is still «too early to tell,» and adds that these projects, including the new Zamboanga airport are priorities of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Source: Malayia Sun