Budget Releases Up, Utilization Steady as of End-May

The government increased its releases of cash allocations with state agencies, registering a steady utilization rate as of the end-May following the record P6.326-trillion budget this year.

- By Louise Maureen Simeon

Latest data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed that notices of cash allocation (NCAs) rose by 11.7 percent to P2.11 trillion from January to May compared to last year's P1.89 trillion.

The utilization rate, however, remained at 94 percent, which was the same level as last year.

This means that of the total releases, P1.98 trillion was utilized and some P136.23 billion was unused as of end-May.

NCAs are disbursement orders by the DBM to government banks servicing the release of funds to agencies. State agencies are expected to use the NCAs to pay for the cash requirements of their programs and projects.

A higher utilization ratio indicates greater capacity of agencies to implement their programs and projects.