THE national government’s disbursements for infrastructure and capital outlays contracted in the first two months of year, even before quarantine measures which restricted construction activities were put in place.
Data posted by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed that expenditures for infrastructure and other capital outlays amounted to P93.9 billion two months into the year, down by P24.5 billion or 20.7 percent from the P118.4 billion recorded a year ago.
“The decrease is mainly attributed to the base effect of high infrastructure expenditures in the same period last year brought about by the payment of prior years’ accounts payable (PY APs) for completed projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). PY APs of the DPWH for its capital outlays for the first two months of 2020 amounted to P35.2 billion, down from the P82.2 billion recorded for the same period last year,” the DBM said.
“This decline was partly offset by the increase in the DPWH current year accounts payable (nearly P13 billion year-on-year), payments for completed projects under the Revised Armed Forces of the Philippines Modernization Program of the Department of National Defense, and encashment of check floats,” it added.
In February alone, disbursements for infrastructure and other capital outlays amounted to P45.6 billion, down 9.3 percent from the year ago level of P50.3 billion.
The DBM said while disbursements for March, and consequently the first quarter of this year, will be higher year-on-year, spending will likely be lower than the program with the delays in program and project implementation as a result of the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak.
“However, it must be noted that with the enactment of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act existing programs, activities, and projects (PAPs) of the government will be reprioritized, reprogrammed, and realigned to the extent possible to augment the provision for priority health and social protection-related programs and other measures intended to contain the COVID-19 emergency and mitigate its impact to the economy,” the DBM said.
“Consequently, disbursements for the next few months are expected to increase with the purchase of medical supplies and equipment of the Department of Health for the COVID-19 response, release of cash subsidies to families and sectors affected by the ECQ such as the Social Amelioration Program, COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program, and the one time grant of financial assistance to local government units equivalent to one month of their internal revenue allotment,” it added.
The DBM said spending for rest of the year will continue to be driven largely by the implementation of COVID-19 related PAPs, as well as other measures or strategies identified and recommended by the Inter-Agency Taskforce for Emerging Infectious Diseases Technical Working Group on Anticipatory and Forward Planning on how to move forward with the “new normal” situation given the coronavirus pandemic.
