Public spending ‘on track’ in 1H

(Courtesy of the DBM)
(Courtesy of the DBM)

THE reforms in the fiscal sector of the economy are finally bearing fruit, as evidenced by the latest data on government finances, said the Department of Budget and Management.

Disbursements in the first half of the year have reached P1.604 trillion, higher by P272.7 billion or 20.5 percent, year-on-year. Compared to the program for the first half of 2018, actual spending is also higher by P34.4 billion or 2.2 percent.

“The performance of government spending is unprecedented, because we are ahead of the program for the first time in history,” said Budget and Management Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno.

“This is a result of the reforms we have implemented in planning and budgeting. This quicker spending should translate to more classrooms for our students, better transport systems for our commuters, improved health and social protection programs for the poor, among other public service provisions,” he added.

Spending for infrastructure and other capital outlays hit P352.7 billion in the first half of the year, up by P103.6 billion or 41.6 percent, year-on-year. This also puts actual infrastructure disbursements above-program by P14.4 billion or 4.3 percent. This is attributed to infrastructure projects of various agencies, especially the road infrastructure projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

In June alone, these projects include the construction, widening, upgrading and preventive maintenance of road networks nationwide under the DPWH; the repair and rehabilitation of classrooms and school facilities under the Department of Education (DepEd) and State Universities and Colleges (SUCs); acquisition of hospital and medical equipment of the Department of Health (DOH); and rail transport projects and purchase of airport security equipment of the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

Personnel Services also reached P460.5 billion in the first semester of 2018, increasing by P77.2 billion or 20.1 percent, year-on-year, primarily due to the higher pay of civilian government employees and military and uniformed personnel.

For June, personnel services was boosted by the filling of positions in various government agencies, the release of retirement and gratuity benefits, and the release of pensions of retirees in the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Although disbursements exceeded the program for the first half of the year, revenue collection continued to be robust giving the government enough fiscal space to stay well within the deficit ceiling.

Revenue collections as ofJune reached P1.411 trillion, surpassing the program of P1.305 trillion by P105.7 billion or 8.1 percent. This also represents a P234.2 billion or 19.9 percent increase, year-on-year. This is largely due to the impact of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN), improved revenue collections of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC), as well as higher remittances of dividends by government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs).

The revenue mix resulted in a deficit of P193.0 billion, P71.3 billion or 27.0 percent below the P264.3 billion program for the first half of the year.

“With the better-than-programmed figures on revenues, spending, and the fiscal deficit, we will continue to spend wisely and promptly to service the huge needs of our people, especially in public infrastructure and social services,” Diokno concluded. (PR)

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