Megawide’s Saavedra says gov’t push, education key to construction growth
By Revin Mikhael D. Ochave, Reporter
EDGAR B. SAAVEDRA, chairman of Megawide Construction Corp., said that targeted government policies and overhauls in the education system are crucial to addressing the Philippine construction sector’s decades-long lag behind global standards.
“If you compare the construction sector of the Philippines to other countries, we are far behind, by about 30 years. If compared to Japan, we’re behind by over 40 years, same with Germany,” the 49-year-old Mr. Saavedra, who also serves as the company’s chief executive officer and president, said in an interview with BusinessWorld.
“If compared to the United States, the Philippines is maybe behind by 20 years. Germany and Japan are more advanced,” he added.
To bridge this gap, Mr. Saavedra said there has to be a push from the government to improve the construction sector.
“It is more on the macro side. There should be a push from the government. We can be like Singapore, which has criteria and (the Building and Construction Authority). They have qualifiers, incentives, and penalties. There is a system,” he said.
According to its website, the Building and Construction Authority oversees the safety, quality, inclusiveness, sustainability, and productivity of Singapore’s built environment sector, which includes structures that provide people with living, working, and recreational spaces.
Mr. Saavedra also emphasized the need for efforts to improve the Philippine education sector, pointing out a disconnect between academia and the local construction industry.
“There’s no program being implemented to force the industry and the universities to work together. The curriculum is disconnected. It’s a multiplier effect,” he said.
“We need to have changes in the programs of schools, as well as the curriculum,” he added.
Mr. Saavedra earned his engineering degree from De La Salle University and pursued special studies in foundation formworks in Germany. He has over 20 years of engineering experience.
Mr. Saavedra and co-founder Michael C. Cosiquien established Megawide in 1997, and it became a publicly listed company in February 2011.
Years later, Mr. Saavedra now has three publicly listed companies engaged in the construction and renewable energy sectors: Megawide, Citicore Energy REIT Corp., and Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC).
Despite being a civil engineer by profession, Mr. Saavedra said he is an entrepreneur “at heart,” attributing this to his mother.
Mr. Saavedra hails from Margosatubig town in Zamboanga del Sur.
“We have a family-run shipping business in the province. I grew up in the province. My mother was strict. During summer, she would tell us to help with the business,” he said.
Regarding his goals for his companies, Mr. Saavedra said he aims for Megawide to grow further independently, supported by its real estate unit, PH1 World Developers, Inc.
Megawide acquired PH1 from Citicore Holdings Investment, Inc. in July 2023 for P5.2 billion, as the conglomerate eyes expansion in the below-middle-income and middle-income segments of the real estate market.
“Before, we were contractors only constructing for others. Now, we want to construct also for our own projects. It should be a balance. The impact is larger if the equipment is ours and we are the ones designing the project. The design will be better,” he said.
Megawide’s project portfolio includes the Parañaque Integrated Transport Exchange, Mactan-Cebu International Airport, and portions of the Metro Manila Subway Project.
PH1 World’s projects include the Modan Lofts Ortigas Hills condominium project in Taytay, My Ensō Lofts in Quezon City, The Hive Residences condominium in Taytay, and The Northscapes housing development in Bulacan.
Regarding his renewable energy ventures, Mr. Saavedra believes these have a different approach compared to other players in the sector. “We are purely focused on renewable energy. We have a different approach compared to other companies. We believe that this technology will help us grow,” he said.
CREC officially became the second publicly listed company this year on June 7, raising approximately P5.3 billion from its initial public offering. It aims to become the largest power producer within the next five years.
Meanwhile, Mr. Saavedra said he is not closing his doors to the possibility of having business ventures in other sectors.
“It depends. You will never know. It depends on the market. We need to look at our surroundings and find out the needs of society,” he said.
“I still have five- and ten-year roadmaps. Those are still clear. But I want to give importance to the journey also,” he added.