Quezon City--- The annual national consultative forum between officials of the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) and the country's numerous water districts will be held on June 21, 2007 at the Manila Hotel with the theme, " Financing and Sustaining the Water Supply and Sanitation Sector in the Countryside."

This was announced by LWUA Administrator Orlando C. Hondrade who will address the forum participants for the first time since assuming the LWUA top post earlier this year. Hondrade will also lead together with LWUA Board of Trustees Chairman Proceso Domingo, Philippine Association of Water Districts (PAWD) Board of Governors Chairman Arturo DG Villasan and PAWD President Romeo Calara the LWUA and water district delegations to the annual consultative forum.

Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary and newly-appointed water czar Sec. Angelo T. Reyes will be the occasion's primary guest of honor and keynote speaker during the opening ceremonies while Department of Finance (DoF) undersecretary Jeremias Paul, Jr. will be the guest of honor and speaker in the awards night. They will be properly introduced by LWUA Trustees Ester A. Laconico-Feria and Leonard Matti, respectively. PAWD Chair Villasan and President Calara will preside over the presentation of awards of recognition to the country's most outstanding and best performing water districts.

Top on the agenda for the forum are technical paper presentations dealing with alternative options for financing provincial water supply projects; review of the issues raised in the last forum and actions taken on the same and the dialogue between key officials of LWUA and the water districts.

Cesar E. Yniguez, consultant for the USAID-Economic Cooperation for Asia program will discuss the topic, " Developing Alternative Lending Strategies and Products for LWUA and the Water Districts;" Land Bank of the Philippines senior vice-president Simeona S. Guevarra will tackle " LBP Lending Schemes for the Water Districts" and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Project Director Kenji Kasamatsu will present " Modeling for Growth for Small Water Service Providers."

Hondrade said this year's forum is crucial in view of the pending Congressional action on LWUA's bid for increased capitalization to sustain the improvement or expansion projects of the small water districts and the ongoing reforms being pushed in the provincial water supply sector.
c May 24 , 2007