THE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has ordered state firms and financial institutions to start drafting their spending plans for 2021.
“With budgeting as the last phase of the planning process, GOCCs/GFIs (Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations and Government Financial Institutions) are expected to anchor their budget proposals on more concrete program plans and designs that outline key procurement and implementation milestones, specific beneficiaries, and improvement in monitoring priority outputs and results,” according to corporate budget memorandum No. 42, dated Nov. 29 and published Wednesday.
Budget Acting Secretary Wendel E. Avisado said GOCCs and GFIs should also consult and with local governments and Regional Development Councils (RDCs) to ensure that their priorities are aligned with regional and local needs.
He said the head of the GOCC or the GFI must ensure that the proposed budget for the year undergoes proper review by the RDC, including obtaining the needed endorsements.
The Development Budget Coordinating Committee (DBCC) on Wednesday approved a P4.64-trillion cash-based budget for the year which is equivalent to 20.2% of gross domestic product (GDP).
Last week, DBM also issued the national budget call for 2021 to state agencies, instructing them to start planning their spending program for the year.
Mr. Avisado has said that for 2021, the transition towards a cash budgeting system will go forward, forcing agencies to spend their allocations within the fiscal year, against the two-year period previously. — Beatrice M. Laforga
