THE largest share of the government’s unprogrammed appropriations (UAs) released as of end-November supported public infrastructure and social program initiatives, data released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) show.
According the DBM, the government released P382.33 billion for unprogrammed appropriations in the first 11 months of year.
Of the said amount, the largest share was used to strengthen assistance for government infrastructure and social programs, amounting to P131.6 billion.
Unprogrammed appropriations serve as standby funds, outside the approved government fiscal program, available for unforeseen but significant expenditures.
“Despite the challenges of working on the UA budget, fiscal authorities, along with implementing agencies, carefully prioritized and ensured unhampered delivery of public goods and social services as well as financing of critical infrastructure projects outlined under UA,” DBM principal economist Joselito Basilio told Malaya Business Insight.
“Still, principles of reformative budget policy have been applied, including the cautious consideration of absorptive capacity and implementation-readiness of projects; fiscal discipline (adherence to the fiscal targets within reasonable bounds); judicious programming; and transparency (e.g. timely reporting of fund releases),” he added.
About P126.76 billion was also used to support foreign-assisted projects, while P43.2 billion was intended for payment of personnel benefits.
Earlier, it was reported that the government’s total allotment releases reached P6.15 trillion as of end-November, as both national budget and unprogrammed appropriations for the year have been fully released.
Of the P6.15 trillion released as of November, P5.77 trillion is the programmed national budget while P382.33 billion was accounted for by unprogrammed appropriations.
The release of unprogrammed appropriations is contingent upon meeting various funding conditions, such as the Bureau of the Treasury collecting excess revenue or new revenue from tax or non-tax sources.
The realization of foreign or approved financial loans/grants proceeds could trigger the availability of unprogrammed funds.
