Gov't spending P1.5 trillion for infrastructure in 2024

The Department of Budget and Management said the Philippine government is spending P1.5 trillion on infrastructure development to sustain the growth of the Philippine economy.

DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said that under the 2024 General Appropriations Act, infrastructure outlays, including the infrastructure components of the subsidy/equity to government-owned and controlled corporations and transfers to local government units, have an allocation of P1.51 trillion, equivalent to 5.7 percent of the gross domestic product.

“Infrastructure development remains a priority under the administration of President Bongbong Marcos. We have allocated P1.51 trillion for infrastructure outlays in this year’s national budget. This is consistent with our Medium Term Fiscal Framework to achieve our growth targets, and is well within the National Government’s target for infrastructure spending at 5 to 6 percent of GDP,” Pangandaman said.

“This allocation is also higher by 13.5 percent compared to the fiscal year 2023 GAA level of P1.33 trillion. This reflects our solid commitment to advance the Build, Better, More program,” she said.

The allocation for infrastructure development aims to continue increasing access to basic services, strengthening industry linkages, and expanding connectivity nationwide through programs, activities, and projects in the infrastructure, transportation, and digital sectors.

These include the construction of various infrastructure projects, such as road networks, flood control projects, sea ports, development of local government units, buildings, irrigation systems, school buildings, hospitals and health centers, water supply systems, airport systems, right-of-way acquisitions, power supply systems, housing and community facilities, railway systems, and reforestation projects.

“For fiscal year 2025, the proposed infrastructure budget amounts to P1.507 trillion, which is still subject to the wisdom of Congress as they deliberate on the budget,” the DBM said.

“While this is 0.3 percent lower than this year’s infrastructure budget of P1.51 trillion, the National Government anticipates that this will be bolstered by the increase in private sector investments through the recent enactment of the Public-Private Partnership Code and the issuance of its Implementing Rules and Regulations. For instance, PPP projects in the pipeline, the bulk of which are infrastructure-related, already amount to $3.183 trillion,” it added.

The DBM also noted that appropriations on infrastructure outlay continued to rise from P989.3 billion in 2020, P1.074 trillion in 2021, P1.178 trillion in 2022, P1.330 trillion in 2023 and P1.510 trillion in 2024.