BSP and BCDA sign contract of lease for new BSP Complex at New Clark City

BSP and BCDA sign contract of lease

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) signed on Wednesday, January 13, a contract for lease of a parcel of land at the New Clark City’s National Government Administrative Center (NCC-NGAC) in Capas, Tarlac that will become the site for the new BSP Complex.

BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno and BCDA President and CEO Vivencio B. Dizon signed the contract of lease during a virtual ceremony.

According to Governor Diokno, “The signing of the contract of lease brings BSP closer to its goal of building a smart, green and modern facility for its operations. This will further bolster the BSP’s capacity to perform its mandate.”

Covering more than 300,000 square meters, the new BSP Complex in NCC-NGAC shall house the BSP’s facilities for security printing, minting and refining, cash operations, and production of National ID, as well as other structures and facilities that will support BSP’s operations.

“We are very excited that the BSP has decided to move its currency printing and mint facilities to New Clark City. A state-of-the-art facility will rise in New Clark City in the coming years—a testament to the administration’s vision of developing a modern, sustainable, resilient and inclusive metropolis while decongesting Metro Manila,” said Mr. Dizon.

Witnessing the signing ceremony were BSP Senior Assistant Governor and General Counsel Elmore O. Capule and BCDA Executive Vice President Aileen Anunciacion R. Zosa.

New Clark City cited as PH’s top sports tourism venue

New Clark City cited as PH top sports tourism venue

The world-class sports complex in New Clark City was cited as the 2019 Sports Tourism Venue of the Year at the 4th Philippine Sports Tourism Awards (PSTA).

Already on its fourth year, the PSTA recognized “exemplary sports initiatives from the public and private sectors who have shown interest and deep conviction in promoting sports tourism in the country during 2019.”

In a taped message, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat noted that just last year, the Philippines successfully hosted the 30th South East Asian Games (SEA Games) and “New Clark City was put on the map as a world-class venue for sports tourism and a center for national sports development.”

“We’d like to thank Secretary Vince [Dizon] for that. Beyond sports, the city’s development of roads and infrastructure paved the way for its transformation into the country’s newest hub for business and government,” she added.

In his acceptance video, Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) President and CEO Vince Dizon highlighted that the New Clark City hub—the first modern sports complex developed by the government since the 1930s when the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex was built—will benefit present and future generations of athletes.

“Our athletes and all our aspiring athletes and sports enthusiasts can use these facilities, train in them, use them for events. Our athletes no longer need to travel abroad to use world-class facilities and qualify for sporting events all over the world,” Dizon said.

Dizon added that athletes “can use these facilities and show that the Filipino is a force to reckon with in international sports.”

“Thank you very much to the Sports Tourism Awards for this honor and recognition and we promise all of our athletes that we will continue to develop this brand new city so that in the next couple of years, not only will we be able to host the South East Asian Games, but we can aspire to host bigger international sporting events in the future,” he said.

The award was received by BCDA Vice President for Business Development Arrey Perez at the Clark Marriott Hotel on Thursday night, December 10.

New Clark City was the main venue of the 2019 SEA Games where the athletics and aquatics events were held. The sports complex features a 20,000-seater Athletics Stadium with a nine-lane, 400-meter track and field oval, a six-lane warm-up track, and an indoor track; and the 2,000-seater Aquatics Center that has a 10-lane Olympic size swimming pool, a diving pool with inland diving training facility, and a warm-up training pool.

New Clark City also has its own 525-unit Athletes’ Village, which can accommodate up to 1,500 athletes. The Athletes’ Village has a basketball court, swimming pool, and fitness facilities.

The New Clark City sports facilities will also be used by the future student-athletes of the National Academy of Sports, which is targeted to be operational by 2021, and other educational institutions to be put up in New Clark City. The new metropolis is also eyed to be the host venue of sports bubbles in aquatics, athletics, and triathlon events next year.

Clark Freeport Zone meanwhile was awarded Sports Tourism Destination of the Year by the PSTA for the third time. Clark, a haven for cyclists, runners, triathletes, other athletes and sports enthusiasts, previously received the same award in 2015 and 2018.

In 2019, Clark was the venue for other SEA Games events, including archery, rugby, baseball, softball, dance sports, petanque, and lawn bowl.

Clark also hosted the recently-concluded 2020 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup under a safe bubble set-up amid the COVID pandemic.

Other awardees in the 4th Philippine Sports Tourism Awards include Manuel V. Pangilinan for Sports Tourism Personality of the Year (private), Mayor Felipe Remollo for Sports Tourism Personality of the Year (government), People’s Television Network for News Coverage of the Year, Philippine Airlines for Airline of the Year, Resorts World Manila for Charity Event of the Year, Coca-Cola Beverages Philippines for Event Sponsorship of the Year, The Mansion Boutique Hotel and Villas for Hotel of the Year, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority for Destination Marketing of the Year, Triathlon Association of the Philippines for Sports Association of the Year, TINMAN Ilocos Norte for Event of the Year (domestic), Ironman 70.3 for Event of the Year (International), Sunrise Events Inc. for Organizer of the Year (private), & Dumaguete City for Organizer of the Year (government).

DA inks deal with BCDA to put up agribusiness hub in New Clark City

DA inks deal with BCDA to put up agribusiness hub in New Clark City
The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) on Friday, December 18, to develop an inclusive agribusiness hub in New Clark City.

New Clark City will be the first site of DA’s “Agro-industrial Business Corridors” (ABC) to be established across different regions to attract more investments in the agriculture sector. The 50-hectare ABC in New Clark City seeks to introduce innovative agricultural technology to farmers, and to provide them with access to quality seeds. The first phase of the project will involve putting up the first National Seed Technology Park (NSTP).

“Alam niyo ang kahalagahan ng buto: it represents life itself because it sustains the life of a crop. Itong araw na ito ay mahalaga because we are starting to realize the vision for putting up the future of agriculture that we want to have,” Secretary Dar said. “We want to work out what are the component strategies that will make it possible for this country, really being an agriculture country, to unleash its potential as a major pillar of the economy.”

The MOA was signed by Agriculture Secretary William Dar and BCDA President and CEO Vince Dizon at the DA office in Quezon City. Also present during the signing ceremony were DA Undersecretary for Agro-industrialization and Fisheries Cheryl Marie Natividad Caballero and OIC Regional Executive Director Crispulo Bautista, Jr., and BCDA Executive Vice President Aileen Zosa and Vice President for Business Development Arrey Perez.

“The Agro-Industrial Business Corridor is critical not just for Clark but for the entire country because agricultural sustainability is really the cornerstone not just of this government but of the entire country and of governments to come,” Dizon said.

Dizon also highlighted infrastructure investments in the region and New Clark City’s resiliency, making the new metropolis a strategic location for the ABC.

“Kinakailangan lagi tayong handa to face the many challenges—especially unknown and unpredicted challenges—that we may have in the future and this pandemic really highlighted how important this is,” he said.
The DA will start the development of the agribusiness hub with a seven-hectare land where the NSTP will be built. The NSTP, which will include a seed laboratory and mini-seed production farms, will allow the development of all types of seed varieties to ensure access to high-yielding seeds.

The other components of the first phase of development include incubation hubs, a Project Management Office, and other institutional developments of the DA.

The New Clark City agribusiness hub is also seen to complement the planned Clark Fresh Food Market in the Clark Civil Aviation Complex, which aims to integrate post-harvest facilities and target niche markets for organic produce, halal-certified goods, and premium quality food products.