DESPITE the delay in the passage of the national budget, as well as the election ban during the first half of the year, state infrastructure spending in 2019 reached P881.7 billion as it outperformed infrastructure disbursements in 2018.
Data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed infrastructure and capital outlays in 2019 exceeded by 9.7 percent or P78 billion the amount recorded in 2018 at P803.6 billion due to the completion or partial completion of big-ticket infrastructure projects.
These include the Central Luzon Link Expressway Phase 1, Cavite-Laguna Expressway, Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway, Flood Risk Management Project for the Cagayan River, Metro Manila Subway Project, North-South Commuter Railway Project, rehabilitation of the MRT 3 and the AFP Modernization Program, among others.
“Notwithstanding the contraction recorded in the first two quarters due to the delayed budget approval and the election ban, infrastructure spending ended with a positive growth rate as a result of the implementation of catch-up measures, such as the 24/7 work schedule for construction of major infrastructure projects; and streamlining of process to expedite right-of-way acquisitions and facilitate payments,” the DBM said in its assessment of government’s disbursement performance for 2019.
“These initiatives, likewise, helped the government beat the P859.4-billion program for infrastructure and other CO [capital outlays] by P22.3 billion or 2.6 percent,” it added.
If the infrastructure component of subsidy and equity to government-owned and -controlled corporations, as well as the transfers to local government units intended for infrastructure projects are taken into account, total infrastructure disbursements in 2019 reached P1.05 trillion, up by 18.4 percent year-on-year, according to DBM. This is also equivalent to 5.6 percent of GDP.
For December 2019 alone, infrastructure and other capital outlays more than doubled to P177.9 billion compared to P75.6 billion in the same month in 2018.
The increase was propelled mainly by strong disbursement performance of the Department of Public Works and Highways.
For 2020, the government vowed to accelerate public spending, particularly on infrastructure outlays and social sector banner programs to hit its growth target of 6.5 to 7.5 percent despite downside risks, including the Covid-19 pandemic, eruption of Taal Volcano and weak global demand.
The P4.1-trillion national budget, which is 12 percent higher than the P3.662-trillion national budget, is equivalent to 19.6 percent of the country’s GDP.