President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. on Wednesday, Dec. 13, ordered government agencies to finish all water-related projects in preparation for the foreseen drought caused by the El Niño phenomenon in 2024.

In his speech during the inauguration of Balba-lungao Small Reservoir Irrigation Project in Nueva Ecija, Marcos said he gave government agencies four months or until April 2024 to complete the water-related projects.

“Kaya’t yung mga ganitong klaseng proyekto, naging mas mahalaga pa, mas urgent pa dahil kakaonti na lang ang ating natitirang panahon. Meron tayong apat na buwan para tapusin iyan, maging operation na lahat iyan. Ang ginawa kong deadline, kako sa kanila ay isipin kung ano ba yung kaya natin matapos by April of next year,” he said.

Marcos said this is to ensure that the country would have enough water reservoirs once El Niño persists past May 2024.

The President also highlighted the importance of ensuring sufficient water and power supplies in hospitals in big cities.

“Alam naman natin kapag mababa ang tubig, nagkaka-problema sa kuryente. Maraming nagkakasakit dahil sa init. Kaya yung mga hospital, kailangan paghandaan din at tiyakin natin na meron silang power supply at water supply, lalo na sa malalaking syudad,” he said.

Marcos said the country should be “prepared to counter” the effects of El Niño phenomenon, which is forecasted to persists until the second quarter next year.

Department of Science and Technology Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. had said that 65 provinces might experience drought while six provinces could be potentially hit by the dry spell.

Drought and dry spells are the negative effects caused by the increase of below-normal rainfall conditions.