The subsidies to government-owned and -controlled corporations as of end-October increased 25.32 percent versus its year ago level, data released by the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed
Accordingto data posted on the BTr website, subsidies from January to October totaled to P205.92 billion, up from the P164.31 billion released in the same period last year.
The lion’s share of the subsidies released to state-run firms, amounting to P51 billion, went to the Social Security System, which is one of those in charge of the small business wage subsidy (SBWS) program.
The SBWS program provided wage subsidies amounting to P5,000 to P8,000 for affected employees and owners of small businesses to help mitigate their loss of income and prevent closures due to the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine in March earlier this year.
Also among the biggest recipients are the National Food Authority with P37.65 billion, Philippine Health Insurance Corp. with P30.45 billion, National Irrigation Administration (NIA) with P29.24 billion and the National Housing Authority (NHA) with P17.99 billion.
In October alone, subsidies amounted to P6.31 billion, 12.81 percent down from the P7.24 billion posted in the same time in 2019.
NIA was the top recipient for the month with P4.27 billion.
Other top recipients include the National Electrification Administration with P885 million, NHA with P252 million, Philippine Postal Corp. with P125 million and Philippine Heart Center with P118 million. (A. Celis)
