Sustainability

We wanted to ask...

How does the Philippine government allocate funds for sustainability projects, and what priorities are their current priorities?

Research Problems

Hypotheses

Description

The Infrastructure Flagship Projects (IFP) 2024 Dataset, compiled by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), provides a comprehensive overview of the status and progress of the national government's infrastructure initiatives. NEDA aggregates this data yearly to track the status of major government projects. It includes key project details such as title, affected sector, implementing agency, cost and funding allocation, funding source, development partners, geographic coverage, target completion year, and current status at the time of data collection. By analyzing the diverse data points in this dataset, we can gain insights into the government's priorities regarding sustainability and urban planning.

Data Collection

Hypotheses

K-Means Clustering

In order to gather deeper insights into the structure and thematic similarities of infrastructure projects, we applied unsupervised clustering techniques to the dataset. The primary objective was to group projects based on textual and categorical features, particularly the project titles (stop words and common terms like "project" or "plan" were removed), sector, and regions. By doing so, we can uncover patterns and recurring themes that may not be immediately evident through raw data inspection, and we can get a better look at where our national government places their priorities in terms of sustainability projects.

We applied K-Means clustering, a method that finds natural groupings in the data without needing predefined categories. Project titles were converted into numerical form using TF-IDF, which highlights important keywords and reduces the impact of common words like "project" or "development."

Due to the sector distribution of the projects, the projects were split into Physical Connectivity and non-Physical Connectivity groups. Each group was then clustered into 4 groups.

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Physical Connectivity Projects

Below is a PCA Projection of the Physical Connectivity Projects clusters. As seen in the figure, there is quite a bit of overlap between the clusters. This may be due to the fact that most of the projects in the physical connectivity center have very similar titles. We can see this in the word clouds presented below.

• Cluster 0 (7 projects): This cluster deals with networks, rails, and highways—likely representing major corridor or interregional connectivity projects focused on central Mindanao and Metro Manila.
• Cluster 1 (92 projects): This is the largest cluster, containing many large-scale infrastructure projects such as airports, expressways, bridges, and transit systems—primarily around Metro Manila and major cities.
• Cluster 2 (24 projects): This group appears to focus on bypasses and coastal roads, especially in Southern Luzon and Mindanao, including key networks in Cagayan de Oro and areas near SLEX.
• Cluster 3 (14 projects): Projects in this cluster highlight improvement works on existing highways, with repeated mention of Daang Maharlika and regions like Agusan del Norte—suggesting a focus on rehabilitation rather than new builds.

While there is some thematic overlap (e.g., many projects involve roads or transport corridors), clustering helped highlight subtle differences in project scale, geographic focus, and type (e.g., new builds vs. improvements).

Non-Physical Connectivity Projects

Below is a PCA Projection of the Non-Physical Connectivity Projects clusters. Compared to the PCA projection of the Physical Connectivity projects, we see less overlap; likely due to the more varied sectors, regions, and plans with these projects.

• Cluster 0 (36 projects): This cluster centers on flood control and water infrastructure such as river systems, rural water systems, and national-level flood risk management—especially in Manila and surrounding areas.
• Cluster 1 (9 projects): These projects mostly relate to waterway improvements and port infrastructure, with repeated mentions of river channels and specific sites like the Pasig and Marikina Rivers.
• Cluster 2 (9 projects): This cluster focuses on irrigation systems, including small reservoir projects in Mindanao and Northern Luzon (e.g., Ilocos Norte) which might likely be agricultural support infrastructure.
• Cluster 3 (14 projects): A more mixed category, but largely tied to developments in Clark (e.g., New Clark City) and district hubs that suggest a focus on urban expansion and utility infrastructure. This may be tied to the recent push in urbanizing New Clark City.

Although most clusters relate to water and infrastructure in some form (since Water Resources is the sector with the most projects after Physical Connectivity), unsupervised clustering helped reveal distinct project focuses: from flood mitigation to agricultural irrigation, port development, and urban expansion. These insights can guide further regional analysis. It even showed the government's possible focus on developing New Clark City.

This research study found that...

The current distribution of sustainability projects in the Philippines highlights a strong focus in developing the infrastructure of regions in and adjacent to Metro Manila. Region’s III, IV-A and the National Capital Region are driven by massive infrastructure projects such as the North-South Commuter Railway, Bulacan International Airport and the Subic-Clark-Manila-Batangas Dedicated Rail Corridor. These investments greatly improve public transportation and traffic congestion, and the prioritization of areas around Metro Manila can be attributed to its high population density and its role in the Philippine economy.

Additionally, the predominance of physical connectivity projects which account for 87.20% of the budget shows the priority of the Philippine government in enchancing transportation services. These transporation projects also come from highly populated areas like Region III, IV-A and NCR, reflecting the government's efforts to improve economic efficiency. However, the sheer amount of transportation infrastructure overshadow other types of projects from Water Resources and Agriculture, which are essential services in our rural communities.

this centralized approach to development leaves the other regions in the dust. Regions outside of the vicinity of Metro Manila receive fewer sustainability projects which reveals issues such as unequal access, slower regional growth, and inadequate infrastructure that stems from a lack of funding in national development plans. Neglecting these areas is especially concerning, as they are more vulnerable to climate change, lack basic services such as water, food and housing, and struggle with limited access to transportation, healthcare and education, all contributing to the widening gap in these communities as compared to the capital.

To reiterate, the goal of SGD 11 is to "Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable". Fulfilling this vision is giving each region a chance to improve their cities with national projects that solve their unique challenges.