DBM releases P353.86B for agencies’ COVID-19 response

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said Thursday it has released P356.86 billion to various government agencies and departments covering funding requirements response and relief efforts amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the Palace briefing, Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado said a total of P353,860,215,840.25 have been released as of May 28, 2020 “to various agencies and departments to support COVID related interventions.”

“This was made possible through the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, which authorized the president to realign, reallocate, and reprogram both the 2019 and 2020 budgets,” Avisado said.

Of the total released amount, P246,526,427, 356 were sourced from pooled savings, P96,717,896,630,000 from unprogrammed appropriations, and P10,615,891,854.25 from reprogramming of existing programs, activities, and projects (P/A/Ps).

The releases to various departments/agencies are as follows:

• Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Social Amelioration Program - P100,000,000,00
• Department of Labor and Employment’s CAMP for OFWs - P1,500,000,000
• Allocation to LGUs’ Bayanihan Grant for Cities and Municipalities - P30,823,759,246
• Allocation to LGUs’ Bayanihan Grant for Provinces - P6,197,287,773
• Department of Health’s RT-PCR SARS COV-2 Detection Kits - P1,912,500,000
• Department of Agriculture’s ALPAS COVID-19 Program - P8,500,000,000
• DSWD’s SAP (balance) - P96,044,703,507
• Department of the Interior and Local Government-Philippine National Police’s Operational Requirements for Temporary Treatment and Monitoring Facilities - P93,099,182
• Department of National Defense-Armed Forces of the Philippines’s Operational  Requirements for Temporary Treatment and Monitoring Facilities - P150,702,648
• DOLE’s CAMP for OFWs (additional) - P1,000,000,000
• University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital’s Augmentation of Operating Budget - P400,000,000
• Department of Finance’s Small Business Wage Subsidy - P51,000,000,000
• DOH Supplemental Budget for the Health Sector - P45,717,896,630

— Ted Cordero/RSJ, GMA News