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4-MONTH BORROWINGS OF N.G. DOWN TO P1.109T w
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Monday, June 12, 2023 Vol. 18 No. 238
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 20 pages |
By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas
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DOF assures defense execs of role in MUP oversight panel
@jearcalas
HE national government’s total gross borrowings from January to April declined by slightly over 6 percent yearon-year due to lower domestic borrowing despite the uptick in its external financing.
Latest Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) data showed that the national government’s total borrowings during the four-month period reached P1.109 trillion, about P74 billion lower than the P1.183 trillion outstanding borrowing recorded in the same period last year. The Treasury data showed that the latest total borrowings already represent half of the P2.207-trillion borrowing plan of the national government this year. The decline in gross borrowings was due to double-digit contraction in domestic borrowings, outpacing the 22-percent hike in external gross borrowings, based on Treasury data. Treasury data showed domestic gross borrowings accounted for 70 percent of the total borrowings while the remaining 30 percent came from external sources. T he national gover nment’s domestic gross borrowings during the four-month period fell by 14.71 percent to P780.785 billion from P915.944 billion recorded last year. The lion’s share of gross domestic borrowings during the reference period came from Fixed Rate Treasury Bonds at P461.15 billion, followed by Retail Treasury Bonds at P283.763 billion. See “Borrowings,” A2
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RAINY KAWIT On a rainy day in Kawit, Cavite, an ice-cream vendor strolls by a vibrant mural commemorating the Philippines’ 125th Independence Day, with the theme “Kalayaan. Kinabukasan. Kasaysayan” (Freedom. Future. History). Despite the weather, the precelebration near the Aguinaldo Shrine, the very site where the Philippines proclaimed independence from Spain 125 years ago on June 12, 1898, carries the spirit of patriotism and remembrance. See Special Feature on Independence Day, pages A6-A7. NONIE REYES
DICT CHIEF RUES DIP IN STARTUP ECOSYSTEM RANK By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes @brownindio
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LT HOUGH t he Ph i l ip p i n e s h a s m a d e hu g e milestones in developing its startup ecosystem, the country has to exert more efforts to bring it back to its lofty ranking in Southeast Asia, the head of the Department of Information Communications and Technology (DICT) has said. DICT Secretary Ivan John Uy said the country’s ranking dropped
to 59th this year from 57th in 2022. It is now behind Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysian, Thailand and Vietnam in terms of the development of startup ecosystem. “The decline in our ranking is a sovereign reminder for us that while we have made significant strides nurturing our startup ecosystem, there is a lot more to be done,” Uy said in his opening remarks during the comeback announcement of Geeks on a Beach (GOAB) in Pasig City. GOAB is a globally-recognized in-
ternational startup event organized on scenic Philippine beaches that aims to inspire relevant discussions on innovations and network-building. Moreover, the event serves as an avenue to discuss relevant key programs of the DICT for the Philippine Startup Ecosystem. Uy said the GOAB conference scheduled on November 23 and 24 this year in Panglao Beach, Bohol, will feature the Philippine Startup Challenge competition for high school and college students. He said the contest aims to
develop ICT products that would address societal problems. He stressed, along with the GOAB meeting, the competition is an aggressive campaign to enable the country to bounce back and become one of the leading destinations in Southeast Asia. “Aside from the GOAB, the DICT will be more aggressive and invigorate the startup ecosystem which highlights the innovation, creativity and brilliance of the Filipinos,” Uy stressed. See “DICT” A2
HE Department of Finance (DOF) assured security and defense officials and officers that they would have representation in the oversight committee of the proposed military and uniformed personnel (MUP) reformed pension system. The DOF revealed that one of the new features of the proposed reforms to the MUP pension would be the inclusion of military and uniformed services representatives in the fund’s oversight committee. The administration’s economic team held consultations with the Philippine Navy last week to discuss the proposed reforms to the MUP pension. “As an additional feature to better manage the pension fund, representatives from the military and uniformed services will also be included in the oversight committee,” it said. Deputy Treasurer Erwin D. Sta Ana assured officers from the Philippine Navy that there will be no co-mingling of funds among MUP and other funds being managed by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). “Ang pinag-usapan ng economic team ay dapat po may sariling accounting ang MUP [Per the economic team’s discussion, MUP should have its own accounting system]. That there will be an accounting standard that will be employed just to make sure that there is proper recording of all these funds,” Sta. Ana said. (What the economic team discussed is that there should be an individual accounting per MUP.) See “DOF,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 56.1470 n JAPAN 0.4043 n UK 70.5262 n HK 7.1647 n CHINA 7.8947 n SINGAPORE 41.8196 n AUSTRALIA 37.6915 n EU 60.5545 n KOREA 0.0433 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.9713 Source: BSP (June 9, 2023)