The Duterte administration has submitted to Congress its proposed 2017 national budget amounting to P3.35 trillion, of which 10.6% is allotted for the development of transportation infrastructure such as railways, seaports, airports, and roads.
Dubbed as “A Budget for Real Change,” the budget proposal for next year was submitted by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on August 15 and aims to channel resources to programs and projects that will help achieve the country’s 10-point socioeconomic development agenda.
Of the proposed budget, 40% will go into empowering human resources through education, healthcare, social welfare, and other social services; 27.6% into economic services to repair the broken infrastructure network, boost the agricultural and rural sectors, and generate more jobs and livelihood; and 22% into general public services and defense.
The government is determined to hike infrastructure spending next year to 6% or 7% of the gross domestic product from the current 5%, with a total proposed budget of P860.7 billion, or 13.8% higher than this year’s budget.
Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno earlier said the Philippine economy was “deficient in all types of infrastructure.”
“We have proposed that P355.7B of the budget for infrastructure be spent for fixing and building road networks, railways, seaports systems, and airport systems. The infrastructure outlay in 2017 is equivalent to 5.4 percent of the GDP. This would eventually make the Philippines at par with its ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) neighbors by the end of this administration,” Diokno said in a statement.
The DBM has allotted P31.5 billion for the Mindanao Logistics Infrastructure Network, higher than this year’s allocation of P19.5 billion, as part of the Duterte administration’s promise to pay equal attention to connecting lagging regions with growth centers.
To support the administration’s drive against crime, illegal drugs, and terrorism, the budgets for the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have been increased substantially.
The PNP is expected to receive a budget of P110.4 billion next year, higher by 24.6% than in 2016, and the AFP P130.6 billion, 15% more than in 2016.
According to the DBM, there is a plan to raise salaries of military and police officers by pursuing a law that improves the base pay of uniformed personnel, while instituting reforms in the pension system of retirees as well.
To de-clog the courts, P32.5 billion is being set aside for the judiciary, higher by 21.5% than in 2016, to be used in creating more Halls of Justice and in implementing the Enterprise Information System.
For the reform of the agriculture and agrarian sector, a total of P120.5 billion is being set aside, which includes the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) P45.3-billion budget to boost the production and marketing of crops, fisheries, and livestock. Part of the DA’s budget is set to go into the immediate construction of farm-to-market roads, post-harvest facilities, and other infrastructure projects.
The funding for the National Irrigation Authority is being hiked to P36.4 billion to build and rehabilitate irrigations systems nationwide, and to subsidize the user’s fees that were being charged on poor farmers.
For its first budget allotment, the newly created Department of Information and Communications Technology will receive P3.56 billion so it can address ICT matters like internet speed, electronic-related crimes, and the mainstreaming of ICT in schools and manpower development programs. The Department of Science and Technology, meantime, will be handed P20.8 billion, which is 14.2% more than this year’s budget, to fund projects such as the modernization of the country’s weather forecasting capability.
The education sector will receive a share of P699.95 billion, or 20.9% of the total budget next year and the health sector, P151.5 billion.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development will get P129.9 billion, which includes the P78.7 billion allocation for the conditional cash transfers for 4.62 million beneficiary families and the P23.4-billion rice allowance for three million beneficiary families.
To support livelihood and employment programs, the Department of Labor and Employment will receive P13.5 billion, and the National Housing Authority P12.6 billion for its work on socialized housing, particularly the resettlement of informal settlers from danger zones and provision of housing assistance to calamity victims.
The Department of Transportation will be given P7.3 billion to relocate informal settler families to be affected by the North-South Railway Project.
To spur countryside progress, the 2017 budget provides for P5.6 billion to be used in electrification projects. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, meanwhile, will receive P37.3 billion, while the Department of Environment and Natural Resources will take in P29.4 billion, which is almost 32% higher than the current allocation, to rebuild forests, reduce climate risks, and protect the integrity of the environment.
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
