Govt gives fewer subsidies in Oct

In October, the national government gave state-owned firms fewer subsidies than a year ago, with the majority going to the National Irrigation Administration (NIA).

According to Bureau of the Treasury data, 32 government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCC) got a total of P5.20 billion in financing for the month, down 17.50 percent from P6.31 billion in October 2020. The NIA received P2.40 billion in October. The agency is in charge of irrigation development and administration in the country. The National Housing Authority (NHA) came in second with P1.09 billion, followed by the Philippine Fisheries Development Authority with P319 million.

In October, the National Home Mortgage Finance Corp., Light Rail Transit Authority, Philippine National Railways, Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority, Bases Conversion and Development Authority, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, Cultural Center of the Philippines, Credit Information Corp., Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions, Development Acadey of the Philippines, Intercontinental Broadcasting Corp., Laguna Lake Development Authority, Lung Center of the Philippines, National Dairy Authority, and National Kidney and Transplant Institute received funds as well.

The Philippine Coconut Authority, Philippine Center for Economic Development, Philippine Children's Medical Center, Philippine Heart Center, Philippine Fisheries Development Authority, Philippine Heart Center, Philippine Institute for Development Studies, Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care, Philippine Postal Corp., Philippine Rice Research Institute, Philippine Tobacco Administration, People's Television Network Inc., Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Social Housing Finance Corp., Southern Philippines Development Authority, and Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority also received assistance.

In the first 10 months of this year, the government spent P151.08 billion on subsidies. For the 10-month period, the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. received the largest subsidy of P76.06 billion. NIA came in second with P30.20 billion, followed by NHA with P15.93 billion. In 2020, the government gave 43 government-owned corporations P230.41 billion in subsidies, up 14.33 percent from P201.52 billion in 2019.

Source: TheManila Times