Subsidies to government-owned and -controlled corporations in the first quarter posted a 49.11 percent decline versus its year ago level, data released by the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed.
According to data posted on the BTr website, subsidies from January to March totaled to P11.42 billion, down from the P22.44 billion released in the same period last year.
The lion’s share of the subsidies released to state-run firms, amounting to P7.49 billion, went to the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), which is responsible for irrigation development and management.
Also among the biggest recipients are the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) with P841 million, Small Business Corp. (SBC) with P500 million, Philippine Heart Center (PHC) with P444 million and the National Kidney and Transplant Institute with P320 million.
In March alone, subsidies amounted to P3.84 billion, 67.89 percent down from the P11.95 billion posted in the same time in 2020.
NIA was also the top recipient for the month with P2.5 billion.
Other major recipients are the Philippine National Railways with P312 million, SBC with P200 million, BCDA with P121 million and PHC with P148 million.
The BTr recently reported that the national government posted a wider fiscal deficit in March as expenditures grew versus the previous year while revenues posted a double-digit decline.
According to the latest cash operations report, the government posted a P191.4 billion deficit for March, rising from P71.6 billion last year.
Government expenditure grew by 22.33 percent year-over-year while revenue generation dropped by 17.37 percent.
The resulting budget deficit for the first quarter surged to P321.5 billion from the P86.2 billion deficit incurred in the first three months of 2020.
