The Cagayan Valley Regional Project Monitoring Committee (RPMC) and the Nueva Vizcaya Project Monitoring Committee jointly conducted Field Monitoring Visits (FMV) cum virtual Problem-Solving Sessions (PSS) in the province.  The two-day blended activity was conducted on June 3-4, 2021 with a combination of actual on-site project visits and virtual problem-solving sessions as this will now be the “new normal” in the conduct of project monitoring because of the current Covid-19 quarantine situation.

The activity commenced with a virtual project briefing with the members of the RPMC, Nueva Vizcaya LPMC, LGU officials, and the implementing agencies to present the implementation status of the five infrastructure projects to be visited. These include the Bambang By-pass Road, Bayombong-Solano By-pass Road, Regional Evacuation Center, Wang Wang Bailey Bridge, and Nueva Vizcaya Provincial Hospital Medical Arts Building.

The Nueva Vizcaya LPMC spearheaded the conduct of an actual on-site inspection joined by RPMC members particularly the Presidential Management Staff (PMS), PIA, and the DILG. The rest of the RPMC members participated in the on-site validation virtually. The monitoring team also utilized a drone to facilitate on-site inspection.

The two-day activity concluded with a virtual exit conference and problem-solving session with the members of the RPMC, LPMC, and representatives of DPWH, DOH, and PDRRMO Nueva Vizcaya. Corresponding recommendations and corrective actions on every issue and concern were presented and discussed.

On the implementation of the Bambang By-pass road, PLGU Nueva Vizcaya agreed to create a committee that would facilitate the completion of RROW requirements to immediately settle the payment of traversed properties. The DPWH welcomed the creation of the said committee, and it also committed to taking appropriate and immediate action on the issues identified related to the implementation of the bypass road project.

For the Bayombong-Solano By-pass road, the DPWH also committed to undertake actions to resolve the identified concerns such as the need to institute drainage to avoid flooding, traffic lights, and road safety signs, among others.

The monitoring team also inspected completed infrastructure projects, namely: the Regional Evacuation Center in Bayombong which was completed on June 2018; the Wang Wang Bailey Bridge in Ambaguio which was completed on October 2, 2019; and the Provincial Hospital Medical Arts Building in Bambang which was completed on December 2020 except for its Phase 3 which is still ongoing and targeted for completion on August 16, 2021. The team noted several observations and issues on these projects that need to be addressed immediately by the concerned implementing agencies. The PDDRMO Nueva Vizcaya expects the Regional Evacuation Center to be functional before 2021 ends as this facility also serves as a multiple-use facility to cater to the Covid 19 cases in the province and nearby provinces. The DPWH, DOH, and the LPMC committed to undertake immediate actions as agreed upon to resolve the identified problems identified during the visits.

With the successful conduct of this blended on-site visit cum virtual problem-solving session, the RPMC2 intends to continue and adopt this strategy as the “new normal” in order to accomplish the planned field monitoring visits until health and travel restrictions are lifted.