THE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) yesterday submitted to Malacañang for approval and endorsement of President Marcos Jr. the government’s proposed 2024 national budget in the amount of P5.768 trillion.
The proposed National Expenditure Program (NEP) for fiscal year 2024 will be formally submitted to Congress on August 2.
In a statement, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said next year’s proposed budget is about 21.7 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 9.5 percent higher than the current 2023 budget of P5.268 trillion.
The DBM said the 2024 NEP will allow the government to continue strengthening the purchasing power of Filipinos, reduce vulnerability and mitigate scarring from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, and ensure sound macroeconomic fundamentals.
“We will present this to Congress, we will defend the President’s budget as much as we can. Our [national] budget is a budget that is responsive to the pressing issues that we have now. At ito pong budget na to ay magsasabi na meron po tayong Bagong Pilipinas (We will present this to Congress, we will defend the President’s budget as much as we can. Our national budget is a budget that is responsive to the pressing issues that we have now. And this is the budget that will show that we already have a New Philippines),” Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said in a separate statement.
Pangandaman also said the proposed national budget “will continue to prioritize expenditure items that promote social and economic transformation through infrastructure development, food security, digital transformation, and human capital development.”
The DBM said P4.02 trillion of the proposed budget is allocated for the national government’s operating requirements and funding for agencies and offices of the executive branch; while P1.748 trillion will be for the National Tax Allotment (NTA) of Local Government Units (LGUs), the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Annual Block Grant, and for debt service, among others.
The department likewise said that 37.4 percent of the proposed budget will be for Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE), 24.9 percent for Personnel Services (PS), 21.6 percent to Capital Outlays (CO), and 11.6 percent to other financial expenses.
In terms of sectoral allocation, the DBM said 29.6 percent of the NEP is allocated for economics, 37.9 percent to social services, 15.5 percent to General Public Services, 12.1 percent to debt burden, and 4.9 percent to defense.
