Navy SOG undergo rigid training at Sangley Point
Members of the Philippine Navy's Special Operations Group (SOG) use their heads to carry a rubber boat as part of their skills and stamina training exercise in Sangley Point, Cavite.
Navy SOG undergo rigid training at Sangley Point | GMA News Online
P2.268-trillion budget eyed for next year
NEXT YEAR’S national budget has been capped at P2.268 trillion, 13% higher than this year’s P2.006 trillion as the government gears up to support a targeted 6.5-7.5% economic growth rate.
National Budget Memorandum 116, dated Feb. 15, details the macroeconomic assumptions, fiscal targets and department ceilings to be used in setting next year’s expenditure plans.
The proposed 2014 ceiling is P262.1 billion more than this year’s budget, which assumed gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 6-7%.
The economy expanded by 6.6% last year, rebounding from the lackluster 3.9% posted in 2011 and also well past the government’s 5-6% target and its 6.5% outlook. It is expected to perform better in 2014.
By sector, agriculture could grow by 3.3-4.3% in 2014, slightly slower than the 3.5-4.5% expected for this year but higher than last year’s 2.92%.
The medium-term growth, the budget memorandum notes, will be fueled by the government’s food sufficiency program.
"Livestock and poultry expansions will be supported by the infrastructure support system, promotion of feed substitutes, and expansion of export opportunities," it states.
Industry, meanwhile, is projected to grow by 7.4-8.6% in 2014, up from this year’s 6.6-7.6% outlook and 2012’s 6.5%.
The services sector, lastly, is expected to expand by 6.5-7.4%, up from the 6.3-7.3% outlook for this year and at par with the 7.4% growth posted last year. It is expected to be driven mainly by transportation, tourism and the real estate sectors.
Other assumptions detailed in the memorandum are gross national income growth of 5.8-6.8%, up from the 5.5-6.5% expected this year and last year’s actual rate of 5.8%; inflation staying within 3-5%; a 364-day Treasury bill rate of 2-4%; and a peso-dollar exchange rate of P42-45 per US dollar -- all unchanged from this year.
The budget memorandum notes that risks to inflation remain "broadly balanced" despite lingering concerns over the weak global economic environment.
Interest rates and the peso, meanwhile, will be supported by the domestic economy’s resilience and will be influenced by developments in the government’s fiscal position and the central bank’s policy stance, as well as the expectation of a steady stream of capital inflows and remittances.
On the fiscal side, the budget deficit is expected to settle at 2% of GDP this year and next year, in line with the government’s medium-term fiscal consolidation program.
In nominal terms, the 2014 budget gap was capped at P266.2 billion, slightly wider than this year’s P238-billion ceiling.
The deficit was capped at P279.1 billion or 2.6% of GDP last year, but preliminary figures released two weeks ago showed that the deficit likely settled at just P253.3 billion or 2.2% of the economy.
A 16% increase in 2014 revenue collections to P2.025 trillion will be targeted, equivalent to a revenue effort of 15.2%, up from this year’s 14.7% programmed ratio.
"The increase will be strongly buoyed by the expected increase in BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) tax effort by 0.4 percentage point from 10.5% to 10.9%, to include the estimated incremental revenues in the amount of P42.9 billion from the proceeds of the sin tax reform law," the memorandum states.
Government spending, meanwhile, will rise to P2.291 trillion or 17.2% of GDP in 2014 from this year’s P1.984-trillion program or 16.7% of the economy.
"This is a considerable expansion of 15.5% or P307.5 billion from the 2013 outlook, to enable increased investments in infrastructure, in good governance and anti-corruption, in building human capabilities especially of the poor, through quality education, public health care and housing and in climate change adaptation measures fundamental requirements for the country’s competitiveness and development," the memorandum states.
National debt as a percentage of GDP is also expected to contract gradually by an average of 1.2 percentage points annually from the 50.9% in 2011 to a projected 46.2% in 2014.
The total budget for government agencies has been tentatively capped at P1.049 trillion, with the Department of Education again given the highest ceiling of P255.15 billion, albeit slightly lower than its approved allocation this year of P293.32 billion.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) was second at P189.295 billion, followed by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), which was assigned P92.215 billion and the Department of National Defense (DND) at P81.78 billion.
Other departments given sizeable caps for next year were Social Welfare (P66.878 billion), Health (P51.756 billion) and Agriculture (P48.33 billion). - See more at: http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=TopStory&title=P2.268-trillion-budget-eyed-for-next-year&id=66344#sthash.uEJj1rYu.dpuf
we both have to expand our military capability, I'm impressed to note that Philippines and PN was a formidable economy and navy in Asia back in 50's 60's. 
