The Pasig River Environmental Management and Rehabilitation Sector Development Program was a large program implemented through the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission with loans from the Asian Development Bank to rehabilitate the polluted Pasig River in the Philippines. The program aimed to relocate informal settler families, upgrade infrastructure, and reduce wastewater discharge into the river. However, it faced challenges in implementation including a complex institutional structure, broad scope, and changing politics. While the program supported national development plans, it did not fully achieve its targets, with many relocated families lacking adequate facilities and utilities and the river's water quality goals unmet even 10 years later.

1. ADB Evaluation Study V :
Loan 1746-Philippines:
Pasig River Environmental Management
and Rehabilitation Sector Development
Development Communication
Second Trimester, AY 2020-2021
Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication
Submitted to :
JOHNNY F. GOLOYUGO
Professor
Submitted by:
BELLA CELESTE ALMEIDA-VELASCO and ARNOLFO B. LOVERIA

2. ADB Evaluation Study V :
Loan 1746-Philippines:
Pasig River Environmental Management
and Rehabilitation Sector Development
A Case Study of Pasig River Rehabilitation

3. Introduction, Rationale, and Objectives
Figure 1. Photograph of Pasig River with Ayala River, City of Manila at the background, ADB Evaluation Study V : Loan 1746-Philippines: Pasig
River Environmental Management and Rehabilitation Sector Development, 2006,
https://www.oecd.org/countries/philippines/47108497.pdf.

4. Introduction:
The Pasig River
• The Pasig River is a 23-kilometer waterway in the
Philippines that connects Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay. Its
length flows north-northwest through the market town of
Pasig and bisects Manila, then enters the bay between the
North and South harbors.
• Since the Spanish period, Pasig River has major influence
on trade, commerce, and urban development.
• To this day, Pasig River is still used as a transport route for
goods and passengers (through bancas).

5. • In 2019, Metro Manila Development Authority
(MMDA) relaunched the Pasig River Ferry Service
as an alternative public transportation.
• The same urban development and civilization
caused the pollution of the River which rendered it
uninhabitable by marine organisms.
• Contributors to its degradation: people
settlements and factories that discharge untreated
wastewater directly into the river

6. • The same urban development and civilization caused the
pollution of the River which rendered it uninhabitable by
marine organisms.
• Contributors to its degradation: people settlements and
factories that discharge untreated wastewater directly into
the river

7. Mitigating Efforts
• Implemented through the Pasig River Rehabilitation
Commission (PRRC)
• Loan Grants from the Asian Development Bank
Philippines: Pasig River Environmental Management
and Rehabilitation Sector Development Program
(Program Number 30308)
1. Loan 1745 - policy loan ($100 Million)
2. Loan 1746 – investment loan ($75 Million)
This study will focus on Loan 1746.

8. Rationale
In relation to the utility of Pasig River,
this study seeks:
1. to determine the intention of the
government in implementing the
Philippines: Pasig River Environmental
Management and Rehabilitation Sector
Development Program;
2. to present the status of Program and its
outcome when the Program ended.

9. Objectives
1. To present the aim and target outcome of the
Philippines: Pasig River Environmental
Management and Rehabilitation Sector
Development Program;
2. To determine the actual outcome(s) of the
implementation;
3. To determine if the Program has been a
success or a failure; and
4. To determine if the expenditure is
commensurate with the results.

10. METHODOLOGY
• This study is descriptive in nature.
• Gathering of data:
1. through internet research using related keywords
2. websites of the Asian Development Bank and other
websites, such as the Organisation for Economic Co-
operation and Development (OECD) website.
• Data availability: All materials can be accessed for free
in the internet; thus, no library research was needed.

11. • The data included were decided based on:
1. Criteria needed to present the case study
better; and
2. Description of the program and its
objectives.
• Photographs of the Pasig River at different
perspectives, as well as tables containing
necessary data were included in this study.

12. FINDINGS
1. The Pasig River Environmental Management
and Rehabilitation Sector Development
Program (PREMRP) was an assistance
package that integrated policy reforms and
investments.
2. If successful, the Pasig River, by 2014, would
have been given the Class C standard.

13. 3. Component measures for implementation:
a) establish a 10-meter environmental
preservation areas (EPAs) or easement
b) upgrade infrastructure and provide municipal
services and facilities in urban renewal areas
adjacent to EPAs
c) introduce a septic tank maintenance service
and provide septage treatment facility to
reduce the volume of untreated municipal
wastewater being discharged into the river,
d) eliminate the illegal dumping of municipal
solid waste into the river system

14. 4. The Pasig River Loan 1746
- negotiated in 1999
- approved in July 2000
- The actual date of loan effectiveness was
August 17, 2000 (October 20, 2020 in loan
Agreement).
- The expected closing date was January 31,
2006 (in loan agreement), but the actual
closing date was March 5, 2009.
- Two extensions for the closing date were
granted, January 31 and September 30, 2008.

15. 5. Roles/Tasks of Agencies
• The Executing Agency (EA) - Pasig River Rehabilitation
Commission (PRRC) created in 1999 under the
Executive Order No. 54 to rehabilitate the Pasig River
to its previous pristine condition
• For the development of resettlement sites and
relocation of families from the environmental
preservation areas (EPAs)
a) Housing and Urban Development Coordinating
Council (HUDCC),
b) National Housing Authority (NHA) and the
c) local government units along the river and its
tributaries

16. • Other institutions which performed in Pasig
River rehabilitation:
a) Environmental Management Bureau
b) Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA),
c) Metro Manila Development Authority
(MMDA),
d) Environmental Management Bureau (EMB),
and
e) Metro Manila Mayor’s Council

17. 6. On space allocation:
As to the 10-meter easement measurements,
negotiations and legal battles ensued between
the government and the Affected Families who
said a 3-meter easement would be enough.
In the end, the 10-meter easement was
sustained by the courts.

18. 7. On the ADB Resettlement Plan:
• The entitlement package was not
received by the first batch of
relocates. (Table 1)

19. Table 1:
Resettlement Plan Entitlement Matrix

20. 8. Only 56% accomplishment in 5 years
As of March 2006, the ADB-approved
Resettlement Plan relocated a total of 6,085
(56%) squatter families of the total 10,827
planned to be relocated during the first phase
of the implementation of the PRDP. (Table 2)

21. Table 2:
Summary of Relocation and Resettlement Operations,
as of March 7, 2006

22. 9. Promised utilities and facilities
not given
• Lack of livable facilities and services in
the relocation sites (schools, health
facilities, water, power)
(Table 3)

23. Table 3:
Post-Relocation Access to Basic Utilities and Services

24. 10. Other issues in the ADB
Resettlement Plan:
• Violent confrontations between the squatter
families and the demolition crews
• Distant location of the site to the APs’
employment or income sources in Metro
Manila
• Loss of stable livelihood and Non-sustainable
home-based enterprises
• Lack of information, consultation, and
participation in impending eviction and
resettlement

25. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

26. The Pasig River Environmental
Management and
Rehabilitation Sector
Development Program was a
gargantuan program.

27. Effects on:
1. Environment
2. Resettlement
3. Lives and Livelihood

28. The Program was relevant,
as it supported the
Medium-Term
Development Plan
of the Philippines

29. The Program was relevant:
1) supported the Philippiness
Medium-Term Development Plan
2) based on the Pasig River
Development Program

30. Factors for challenges faced in
implementation:
1. complicated institutional structure
2. broad scope of activities, and
3. changing political climate.

31. Identified risks to implementation:
1. lack of political support;
2. weak enforcement of environmental
regulations; and
3. reluctance and refusal of the
informal settlers to relocate.

32. CATCH!
Loan 1746 closed on March 5, 2009.
But in 2015 (10 years after the program
implementation), the Commission on Audit
criticized PRRC for failing to hit the target of
rehabilitating the river and its
tributaries (Rappler, 2016).

33. COA reported that only 2,442
informal settler families (ISFs)
(82% of the 2,973 families)
that should have been relocated in
2015, were ACTUALLY relocated.

34. REFERENCES
ADB Evaluation Study . (2006, October). Retrieved March 2021, from
https://www.oecd.org/countries/philippines/47108497.pdf
ADB Validation Report. (2012, November). Retrieved March 2021, from
https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/evaluation-document/36027/files/pvr-
187.pdf
Asian Development Bank. (2003, January). Country Assistance Program Evaluation in
the Philippines. Retrieved March 2021, from
https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/evaluation-document/35041/files/cap-phi-
200304.pdf
Asian Development Bank. (2000 March).
https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/project-document/71641/rrp-phi-30308.pdf
Cruz, R. T. (1997). Case Study III* - The Pasig River, Philippines . Retrieved March 2021,
from
https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/resourcesquality/wpccasestudy3.pdf

35. Rivas, R. (2018, October 17). Look: Now 'Instagram-worthy' Pasig River bags
international award. Retrieved March 2021, from Rappler:
https://www.rappler.com/environment/pasig-river-asia-riverprize-award-2018
Rivas, R. (2019, August 14). Huge fish from Pasig River not safe to eat. Retrieved March
2021, from Rappler: https://www.rappler.com/environment/prrc-says-huge-fish-pasig-
river-not-safe-eat
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2021). Pasig River. Retrieved March 2021,
from Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.: https://www.britannica.com/place/Pasig-River
Water Environment Partnership in Asia. (n.d.). Pasig River. Retrieved March 2021, from
WEPA: http://www.wepa-
db.net/policies/measures/background/philippines/pasigriver.htm

36. Note: ADB Evaluation Study V : Loan 1746-Philippines: Pasig River
Environmental Management and Rehabilitation Sector Development, 2006,
https://www.oecd.org/countries/philippines/47108497.pdf.
Figure 1

37. Figure 2
Note: ADB Evaluation Study V : Loan 1746-Philippines: Pasig River
Environmental Management and Rehabilitation Sector Development, 2006,
https://www.oecd.org/countries/philippines/47108497.pdf.

38. Table 1

39. Table 2

40. Table 3