BUDGET Secretary Florencio B. Abad said the government can use up to P21.5 billion of the proposed P2.606-trillion national budget for next year to meet relief and rehabilitation needs after Typhoon Ruby (international code name Hagupit) hit the country.
Abad said the government can readily tap P5.34 billion allocated as Quick Response Funds (QRFs) under the current budget for rehabilitation and reconstruction of areas affected by Hagupit.
Additional funds shall be made available for relief and rehabilitation efforts once the proposed 2015 national expenditure program is approved in Congress and signed by President Aquino, Abad said in a statement.
The bicameral conference committee has recently approved the 2015 General Appropriations bill, which is expected to be signed by Mr. Aquino before Christmas.
He said there are fund sources to sustain the rehabilitation and reconstruction programs for Ruby-devastated areas, including the contingent fund, worth P2 billion and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management fund worth P 13 Billion fund.
The QRFs allocated in respective departments for 2015 include P1.33 billion for the Department of Social Welfare and Development; P1 billion for the Department of Education; and P1 billion for the Department of Transportation and Communications.
Meanwhile, the Department of National Defense has also P353 million as QRF to address needs under national calamities and disasters, according to Abad. On the other hand, he said there’s also an available P530 million under the Office of Civil Defense for the same purpose.
Abad added that the Department of Public Works and Highways has a total of P800 million as QRF allocation, while the departments of Agriculture and Health each has P500 million at their disposal for disaster response.
Abad said the National Irrigation Administration has a total allocation of P500 million for QRFs for 2015.
The QRFs are released at the start of the year as part of the GAA-as-release document regime. Such measure, Abad said, allows government agencies to make immediate use of funds for emergency-response functions.