FINANCE Secretary Ralph Recto has lauded the findings of the latest expenditure and financial management assessment on the Philippines, underscoring the government’s duty to spend every peso wisely, especially amid the budget season.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Department of Finance (DOF) said the 2024 Philippines Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability Reports found that the country meets the basic requirements for public financial management, with superior performance across all areas, including gender, climate, child and disaster responsiveness.
The 2024 PEFA Assessment is the first multi-framework, multi-stakeholder assessment of its kind in the Philippines, led by the Asian Development Bank, with support from development partners. It provides an evidence-based look at the strengths and weaknesses of the country’s Public Financial Management (PFM) system.
The DOF said having a robust PFM system is a strong foundation for sound fiscal policy and governance, which is crucial to ensuring the country achieves its development aspirations.
“I see these reports as part of the compelling literature that will remind those with the power to ordain public spending of their cardinal duty to spend wisely and never recklessly,” Recto said.
The reports came out just in time for the budget season, which the finance secretatry said should guide the government on how to craft a spending plan resilient to shocks, responsive to disasters and receptive to national goals.
“And above all, resistant to the tinkering and the tampering that subvert national goals and derail our fiscal plan,” he said.
He added that the government must spend only what it can sustainably raise and not bequeath a huge debt to the coming generations.
The report said the Philippines maintains a strong fiscal foundation, demonstrated by robust revenue and expenditure performance, effective debt and cash management, comprehensive performance monitoring, transparent intergovernmental transfers and improved procurement oversight.
To sustain and build on these gains, Recto reiterated the government’s strong commitment to the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework, while continuously raising the bar for fiscal discipline and good governance.
