GOVERNMENT spending fell almost a tenth at end-May, as the Department of Budget and Management blamed the absence of election-related spending.
In a statement, DBM Secretary Florencio Abad said spending of all government agencies hit P402.8 billion in the first five months of the year, down from the P441.25 billion a year ago.
Abad said this year’s five-month spending was 8.7 percent less than the P441.3-billion checks encashed in the same period last year.
The amount represented monies issued with Notices of Cash Allocation (NCA), excluding interest expense, net lending and other non-NCA disbursements. The amount spent was equivalent to a third of the P1.23-trillion NCA disbursement program for the year.
“The departments and agencies are now catching up with their spending. With their catch-up plans in place, we are expecting further improvements in the next months ahead,” Abad said.
Earlier, the budget chief called on departments and other government agencies to fast track their respective spending programs to avert an economic slowdown.
At end-May, the amount of checks negotiated hit 92 percent of the total P437.9-billion NCAs issued, an improvement from the end-April’s 90 percent.
Top spenders during the period were the Departments of Education, of National Defense, of Interior and Local Government, of Public Works and Highways, of Health, of Agriculture, of Social Welfare and Development, and of Transportation and Communications, with the negotiated checks for these agencies comprising 50 percent of the total.
Departments whose disbursement performance during the period improved year-on-year were DSWD at 74.7 percent; DOH, 14.7 percent; DND, 9.9 percent; and DepEd, 0.9 percent.
Abad said DSWD’s implementation of its Conditional Cash Transfer Program is proceeding faster than programmed.
“Secretary Dinky Soliman reported to us that already 1.47 million household-beneficiaries, or 63 percent of the target, have started receiving their cash subsidies at the end of May,” Abad said.
Agencies whose disbursement performance slowed year-on-year were the DPWH at 71.8 percent; Department of Agriculture, 39.2 percent; DOTC, 5.6 percent; and DILG, 4.1 percent.
Abad said infrastructure spending of the DPWH, DA and DOTC should pick up in the remainder of the year as these agencies have crafted catch-up plans.
During the upcoming Mid-Year Assessment of the 2011 Budget, departments and agencies are expected to present their progress in their catch-up plans and measures to accelerate their programs and projects, the DBM chief said.
Among the key releases during the first five months of the year were the P7-billion School Building Project, P5-billion Health Insurance Program, the P3.43-billion National Rice Program, and the P1-billion Potable Water Supply Program.
Of the total P1.711-trillion disbursement program for this year, P1.237 trillion represents NCA disbursements while P474 billion are non-NCA disbursements.
By Katrina Mennen A. Valdez, The Manila Times
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