News Flash DBM releases 75% of ’12 budget
DBM releases 75% of ’12 budget
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- Published on Wednesday, 18 July 2012 00:00
By A Web design Company
The Department of Budget and Management had released 75 percent of the 2012 national budget as of June 30 to ramp up spending for infrastructure and social development programs.
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad yesterday said that the government had released P1.36 trillion of the P1.816 trillion full-year budget as of end-June.
“We affirm the Administration’s continuing commitment to expedite fund releases to government departments and agencies,” Abad said.
“Beyond driving our fiscal momentum forward, the releases also help ensure that agencies will have the sufficient means and capacity to roll out their programs and deliver quicker benefits to all Filipinos,” the budget chief said.
Abad said that the bulk of the releases went to national government agencies, which received P804.334 billion for the first half of the year, or 94.1 percent of the P854.391 billion program for agencies for 2012.
Releases for personal services, as well as maintenance and other operating expenses, had reached P425.25 billion and P216.7 billion, respectively, or 99.8 percent and 98.4 percent of the full-year program.
Releases for capital outlays, meanwhile, reached P162.3 billion or 78 percent of the 2012 program.
Of the released department budgets, the Department of Public Works and Highways received P94.72 billion for its road construction and rehabilitation projects, and its flood control projects.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development received P43.21 billion, which will be used as financial assistance to indigent families through the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program; and P1.23 billion to support the social pension for indigent senior citizens across the country.
The Department of Agriculture got P22.07 billion for the construction, restoration, and rehabilitation of national irrigation projects.
The agency was also given P12.68 billion for the implementation of rice and fisheries programs, and P2.5 billion for the construction of farm-to-market roads.
The budget chief requested all agencies to optimize the releases made to them.
“This way, the implementation of key projects will proceed as scheduled, and the agencies themselves can speed up critical service delivery to the public,” Abad said.
The DBM also released P79.55 billion for the Special Purpose Funds, with the fund released for the first half of the year accounting for 33.4 percent of the P237 billion programmed for 2012.
The bulk of the Special Purpose Funds went to salary increases for government employees under the third tranche of the Salary Standardization Law III amounting to P29.05 billion.
Payment for terminal leaves and retirement benefits of retiring government employees totaling P10.99 billion was also released.
“Now that we’re in the second semester of the fiscal year, it’s even more crucial for us to fulfill the Administration’s socio-economic agenda,” Abad said.
“The National Budget will continue to support the empowerment of the country’s poor and vulnerable, as well as facilitate macroeconomic stability and long-term economic growth,” he added.
