Marcos admin allotted 5-6% of GDP for infra development, OPS says

The administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has earmarked a significant portion relative to the country’s economy for infrastructure development as well as increased budget for agriculture and healthcare, the Office of the Press Secretary (OPS) said Saturday.

In a statement, citing the Department of Budget and Management’s (DBM) accomplishment, the OPS said the Budget department allotted 5% to 6% of annual gross domestic product (GDP) under the “Build Better More” programs.

“For the agriculture sector, the DBM said there was a significant increase in the sector’s budget with the department doubling the allocation for major agricultural and fishery programs,” the OPS said.

“To provide Filipinos with better health services, the DBM released over P44 million to fund the development of the Marawi City General Hospital,” it added.

Likewise, to mitigate the impact of climate change, the Budget department backed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ (DENR) National Greening Program and the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Renewable Energy Development Program.

“According to the DBM, it also allocated a hefty amount in the 2023 national budget for climate-related expenditures,” the OPS said.

“Also listed in the DBM’s accomplishments this year is its aggressive digitalization in line with President Marcos’ agenda,” it said.

Under its digitalization thrust, the DBM expanded its Action Document Releasing System (ADRS) and carried out the Unified Reporting System (URS) Encoding to its regional offices, according to the OPS.

The Budget department has also digitalized the Public Financial Management Program and the Learning Management System (LMS).

The DBM inked a memorandum of agreement with Government Servicing Banks (GSB) on the online release of the Notice of Cash Allocation (NCA) in the ADRS, and worked with local government units (LGUs) for enhanced Public Financial Management Assessment Tool (ePFMAT).

“Next year, the DBM’s priority legislative agenda will include the Progressive Budgeting for Better and Modernized Governance Bill (PBBM), Budget and Treasury Management System (BTMS), National Government Rightsizing Program (NGRP), and Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF),” it said. —KG, GMA Integrated News