DBM: P6.8-B calamity fund available

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said Thursday that concerned government agencies can tap the remaining P6.8 billion under the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund (NDRRMF) for 2022 for response and relief efforts following the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed Proclamation 84 on Wednesday, declaring a state of calamity in Regions IV-A (Calabarzon), V (Bicol), VI (Western Visayas), and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) due to the effects of Paeng.
 
In a statement, the DBM said that in the aftermath of natural disasters and other calamities, government agencies can utilize the balance of P6,863,219,462 in the NDRRMF, “subject to applicable provisions in the 2022 General Appropriations Act (GAA).”
 
The department said the P6.8-billion balance in the NDRRMF is part of the P20 billion allocated for disaster risk reduction and management this year.
 
“Please note that under the 2022 GAA, P19 billion was allocated for programmed appropriations in the NDRRMF, while P1 billion has been set aside for the Marawi Recovery, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Program (MRRP),” it said.
 
To improve the government’s response to calamities, the DBM said it has increased the NDRRMF from P20 billion to P30 billion, “plus a P1-billion budgetary allocation for the Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Fund under the 2023 National Expenditure Program (NEP).”
 
The DBM said the increase in the NDRRMF was in adherence to the directive the President to transform the economy into something that is proactive rather than reactive and to strengthen the country’s readiness and response efforts in times of disaster. — VBL, GMA News