THE DEPARTMENT of Budget and Management (DBM) said Tuesday that it had released over P4 trillion in budget funds to government agencies and local government units as of the end of April.
In the DBM’s Allotment Releases report for April, the P4.3 trillion in funds released was equivalent to 85.6% of the 2022 budget, leaving P723.26 billion remaining to be distributed.
At the end of April 2021, the DBM had released P3.6 trillion, or a little over 80% of the P4.5-trillion budget that year.
In April 2022, releases to government agencies and departments amounted to P2.72 trillion, representing 94.5% of the funds allotted to them.
Meanwhile, Special Purpose (SP) funds released during the month amounted to P173.75 billion, or 38% of the SP budget.
SP items include budget support for local government units, the Contingent Fund, the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund, and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund.
Automatic Appropriation releases amounted to P1.27 trillion, representing 75.8% of the allocated total.
These automatic appropriations include retirement and life insurance premiums, the internal revenue allotment, block grants, and interest payments.
The national budget for 2022 is configured to support a recovery from the pandemic. The budget is equal to 21.8% of the projected gross domestic product, with about a fifth set aside for capital outlays, which includes infrastructure spending. — Tobias Jared Tomas
