MANILA. Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. approved the proposed P6.352 trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) for Fiscal Year 2025, said the Palace on Tuesday.
According to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) in a statement, Marcos approved the 2025 NEP during a Cabinet meeting at the Malacañan Palace where Budget Sec. Amenah Pangandaman presented the proposed national budget for 2025.
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Marcos’ directives and policy guidance for the NEP include prioritizing food security, social protection, healthcare, housing, disaster resilience, infrastructure, digital connectivity, and energization.
“You see a really good thing,” Marcos was quoted by the PCO as saying in the meeting.
“Since I’ve seen it before on the macro level, I think the priorities in terms of our proposed appropriations, upon addressing it, weighted our priorities properly in terms of appropriations,” he added.
Under the approved NEP, the agencies getting the lion’s share of government appropriations included education, public works, health, interior and local government, and defense.
Other top priorities also included social welfare, agriculture, transportation, the judiciary, and justice.
Regarding expense class, the PCO said maintenance and other operating expenses are getting the largest share followed by personnel services, capital outlays, and financial expenses.
Meanwhile, the PCO said the 2025 budget was based on the availability of fiscal space, implementation and readiness of Program/Activity/Projects or PAPs, the agency’s absorptive capacity, alignment with the Budget Priorities Framework and Philippine Development Plan 2023 to 2028.
“The Public Investment Program, Three-Year Infrastructure Program, Information Systems Strategic Plan, and Program Convergence were also key factors,” said the PCO.
With Marcos’ approval, the NEP is set to be submitted to Congress to be deliberated by the Senate and the House of Representatives.