Overview: The transportation system faces the fundamental geographic challenge that the Philippines is a far-flung archipelago. This fact offers a partial explanation for the country’s relatively undeveloped transportation infrastructure. Another reason is the sustained underinvestment in infrastructure since the 1997–98 Asian economic crisis. In 2003, for example, infrastructure investment accounted for only 3.6 percent of gross domestic product, well below the rate of investment in Thailand (15.4 percent) and Vietnam (9.9 percent). Consequently, the Philippines ranked 89 out of 102 countries in infrastructure quality in 2004, according to the World Economic Forum. Among developing economies in East Asia, the Philippines ranked last for the quality of its railroads, ports, and electrical systems. The road network is mostly unpaved, only slightly more than half of the limited railroad system is in operation, and only a few ports have major passenger and cargo terminals. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo hopes to establish a highway and ferry network that will ease travel across the archipelago.

Roads: Although an extensive road network covers almost the entire nation, the quality varies widely, and traffic congestion is common, particularly in Manila. Local governments are responsible for managing some 86 percent of the 202,000-kilometer network. An estimated 60 percent of roads are unpaved village roads. As for the national network, 70.4 percent of roads are paved with concrete or asphalt, with the remainder consisting of gravel or earth. In urban areas, transportation is available by car, bus, light rail, metro rail, and jeepney. The highly decorated but popular jeepney, a derivative of the World War II-era U.S. Army jeep, has been adapted to public transportation. In the provinces, buses, jeepneys, and three-wheeled taxis are the main modes of ground transportation. A priority in the nation’s lagging road investment program is the improvement of roads carrying goods to and from ports.

Railroads: The Philippines has 897 kilometers of railroads, but much of the network in the north is closed because of its poor condition. The main railroad line, of which 440 kilometers are operational, is located on the island of Luzon, the largest island in the archipelago and home of Manila. On Luzon, the Philippine National Railways provides long-distance service, while in Metropolitan Manila, the Metro Rail Transit Authority and Light Rail Transit Authority provide elevated, light-rail service.

Ports: As an archipelago, the Philippines has more than 1,000 ports, of which 117 are regarded as international ports. The Philippines Port Authority, which administers the ports, has the mission of promoting maritime trade within the context of the Philippines’ hoped-for transformation into a newly industrialized country. About 12 of the 117 international ports have major cargo and passenger terminals. The premier cargo terminal is in the Port of Manila. The domestic ports service inter-island boats, ferries, and roll-on, roll-off vessels. Some remote islands are accessible only by boat. In 2003 privately controlled ports accounted for 54 percent of total cargo serviced. Private ports generally handle more international trade, whereas government-run ports service mainly domestic trade.

Inland Waterways: The Philippines has 3,219 kilometers of inland waterways. The nation’s inland waterway system is the thirty-second largest in the world.

Civil Aviation/Airports: The Philippines has 87 airports, including four major international airports: Mactan-Cebu International on Mactan Island in Cebu province, Ninoy Aquino International in Manila, Diosdado Macapagal International at the former U.S. Air Force base at Clark Field, north of Manila, and Davao International Airport near Davao City on Mindanao. Most of the other regional airports are substandard. The government is working on improving the civil aviation infrastructure. A legal dispute is holding up the opening of a newly constructed terminal at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. A consortium of international companies is seeking to recover investments in the project, following the revocation of the group’s build-operate-transfer contract and seizure of the terminal by President Macapagal-Arroyo’s administration. The government plans to complete the terminal in early 2006, but the opening is likely to be delayed. The flagship airline is Philippine Airlines, which serves 32 foreign and 21 domestic cities with a fleet of 30 Boeing and Airbus aircraft.

Pipelines: In October 2001, multinational energy companies began to tap natural gas from the Malampaya offshore field in the South China Sea by completing a 502-kilometer pipeline, one of the longest deep-water pipelines in the world. The Malampaya field is believed to contain 2.6 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The natural gas will be used to fuel three power plants with a combined annual capacity of 2,700 megawatts.

Telecommunications: Mobile telecommunications are more popular than fixed-line telecommunications in the Philippines. An estimated 30–40 million Filipinos have cell phones. The Philippines uses the Global System for Mobile Communications, a second-generation digital technology employed by 71 percent of the world market. In November 2004, the National Telecommunications Commission held initial hearings to lay the groundwork for the introduction of third-generation digital technology, already widely used in the United States, Europe, and much of the Asia-Pacific region. In December 2005, the government authorized four domestic carriers to provide third-generation cellular service beginning in 2008. Third-generation technology enables high-speed, high-bandwidth video applications by cell phone. Currently, Short Message Service, a system for text messages under 160 characters in length, is widely used, with more than 200 million messages transmitted per day, but Multimedia Message Service has been gaining acceptance since its introduction in 2003.

In 2003 the Philippines had 11.5 million radios, 3.7 million televisions, and 1.5 million personal computers. Internet access is modest, particularly in comparison to other countries in the region. Whereas South Korea boasts the world’s highest Internet broadband penetration rate, only about 5 million Filipinos have Internet access, and 85 percent of them rely on dial-up connections. The Philippine Long Distance Company, the largest telecommunications provider, is responsible for maintaining a national digital fiber-optic network, digital microwave radio, and satellite communications.

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This series of profiles of foreign nations is part of the Country Studies Program, formerly the Army Area Handbook Program. The profiles offer brief, summarized information on a country’s historical background, geography, society, economy, transportation and telecommunications, government and politics, and national security. In addition to being featured in the front matter of published Country Studies, they are now being prepared as stand-alone reference aides for all countries in the series, as well as for a number of additional countries of interest. The profiles offer reasonably current country information independent of the existence of a recently published Country Study and will be updated annually or more frequently as events warrant.