Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 20) — The Department of Education (DepEd) is poised to secure a substantial budget of over ₱9 billion to fuel its digitalization initiatives in the coming year, as disclosed by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
In a statement released on Wednesday, DBM revealed that the allocation for digitalization would experience a significant 60.6% surge, skyrocketing to ₱38.75 billion from the current ₱24.93 billion.
Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman emphasized the significance of embracing technological advancements. She stated, “Technological advancement has given rise to a growing digital economy which continues to create new forms of work, transforming the employment landscape. Hence, investing in the digitalization of the bureaucracy is crucial not only in enhancing its efficiency but also in generating quality jobs for Filipinos.”
Among the ten governmental agencies earmarked to receive the lion’s share of funding for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and digitalization within the budget, DepEd reigns supreme with an impressive ₱9.43 billion allocation.
Here is a breakdown of the other nine agencies and their respective budget allotments:
- Department of Justice (₱5.55 billion)
- Department of Information and Communications Technology (₱5.34 billion, exclusively for ICT program-related expenditures)
- Department of Finance (₱3.15 billion)
- Department of Interior and Local Government (₱2.60 billion)
- National Economic and Development Authority (₱2.08 billion)
- The Judiciary (Supreme Court, Presidential Electoral Tribunal, Sandiganbayan, Court of Appeals, Court of Tax Appeals) (₱1.44 billion)
- Department of National Defense (₱1.12 billion)
- Department of Environment and Natural Resources (₱913 million)
- Other Executive Offices (₱890 million)
DBM has outlined specific programs that will benefit from this allocation, including:
- ICT systems and infostructure development, management, and advisory program (₱990.631 million)
- National government data center infrastructure (₱1.67 billion)
- National government portal (₱302.86 million)
- National broadband plan (₱1.5 billion)
- Free Wi-Fi in public places and state universities and colleges (₱2.5 billion)
