Personnel services to get biggest share in proposed 2021 budget

The biggest share of the proposed 2021 budget will be for personnel services, to go towards the additional hiring of health care workers, a salary hike for government employees, and the increased pension of military and uniformed personnel.

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Tuesday submitted to Congress the proposed P4.506-trillion spending program for 2021, themed "Reset, Rebound, and Recover: Investing for Resiliency and Sustainability."

According to the DBM, personnel services will have the biggest share of the proposed 2021 budget, accounting for 29.2% or P1.32 trillion.

"This level considers the huge additional hiring of health workers under the Human Resource for Health Program of the Department of Health (DOH), the second tranche implementation of the Salary Standardization Law of 2019, and the increased pension requirements of military and uniformed personnel," the DBM said.

The Salary Standardization Law, signed by President Rodrigo Duterte, authorized the increase in the salaries of over 1.4 million government employees in four tranches starting January 2020 and ending in 2023.

Duterte also signed into law a measure hiking the monthly old-age pension of living war veterans from P5,000 to P20,000. Those who previously did not receive pensions from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) would also be entitled to the P15,000 increase in the monthly old-age pension.

Personnel services will be followed by capital outlays, accounting for 20.4% or P920.5 billion, owed mainly to the increase in infrastructure programs of the Departments of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) with 14.7%, and Transportation (DOTr) with 42.6%.

Meanwhile, Maintenance, Operating, and Other Expenditures (MOOEs) will amount to P699.4 billion, debt burden with P560.2 billion, support to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) with P157.5 billion, and tax expenditures with P14.5 billion.

"Every peso of the P4.506-trillion FY 2021 NEP (National Expenditure Program) went through numerous budget hearings and consultations with the agencies," the DBM said in a statement.

In terms of sectors, the bulk of next year's proposed budget will be for social services following the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the country.

"[T]he bulk of next year's proposed budget will be provided to the social services sector amounting to P1.664 trillion, equivalent to 36.9%," the DBM said.

The amount includes funding support for programs related to health, social protection, and education.

The economic services sector will receive the second-highest allocated with P1.347 trillion or 29.9%, followed by the general public services sector with P724.2 billion, debt burden with P560.2 billion, and defense with P210.6 billion.

Top Departments

The Department of Education (DepEd) will have the biggest slice from the proposed budget, with an allocation of P754.4 billion.

The allocation includes support for the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education (P47.1 billion), and Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan Program or BELCP (P16.1 billion).

The DepEd is followed by the following departments:

• Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) - P667.3 billion
• Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) - P246.1 billion
• Department of National Defense (DND) - P209.1 billion
• Department of Health (DOH) - P203.1 billion
• Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) - P171.2 billion
• Department of Transportation (DOTr) - P143.6 billion
• Department of Agriculture (DA) - P66.4 billion
• Judiciary - P43.5 billion
• Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) - P27.5 billion

"Summing up to P2.564 trillion, the budget of these top ten departments accounts for 56.9 percent of the proposed budget, and 86.9% of the total proposed budget for National Government Agencies," the DBM said.

The Department of Finance (DOF) earlier said the Philippines will sustain its P3-trillion borrowing program in 2021, with bulk or 75% to be financed from local sources. — BM, GMA News