Page 8 - Edbm News Today

The government is bent on meeting this year’s infrastructure spending program even as expenses remain below target as of end-September.

The government expects to fully digitalize the manner of releasing budget allocation to various agencies by the first quarter of 2023.

The government hiked its infrastructure expenses in the nine months to September this year largely on road projects, but this was still slightly below the P759-billion spending program amid delays due to the conduct of the recent elections.

DBM releases P5.2M for third tranche of cash aid

The government has released P5.2 billion to be distributed to low-income households most affected by the continued increase in the prices of basic commodities, the Department of Budget and Management announced yesterday.

The Department of Budget and Management has allocated almost P70 million to contributed support the commercialization of copra meal as feed alternative amid the high cost of imported commodities used in the livestock industry.

A senior opposition lawmaker is calling on his colleagues in the House of Representatives to step into the budget standoff between the Department of Budget and Management and the National Power Corp. over the latter’s 2023 budget allocation.

The Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management needs to be “abolished” to save on government funds merely funneled to bureaucratic corruption, just like the Department of Education’s purchase of pricey laptops, according to a lawmaker.

There are more than 160,000 unfilled positions in the national government, while 62,000 workers hold non-permanent positions, according to the Department of Budget and Management.

The government has included P220 billion in additional funds on top of the P5.02-trillion national budget for this year, the bulk of which were unprogrammed appropriations.