By the late 1990s it had become apparent that the needs for capital investment in local infrastructure for the rapidly urbanizing Philippines exceeded that which could be provided by the central government and international donors, and that private capital would have to be mobilized to permit the population access to essential services. Much of the responsibility for local infrastructure rested with local government units (LGUs), which had the authority to borrow for such purposes. However, LGUs were reluctant to borrow, and when they had borrowed, they had done so almost exclusively from government financial institutions (GFIs). Private financial institutions (PFIs) in turn had been reluctant to lend to LGUs due to a lack of information about and familiarity with LGUs, skepticism about their creditworthiness, and a tradition of conservative lending practices.