Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)Assistant Governor Amenah "Mina" Pangandaman has accepted her nomination as the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) secretary of the incoming Marcos administration.

This was confirmed Monday, May 30 by Press Secretary-designate Trixie Cruz-Angeles in a press conference at BBM (Bongbong Marcos) headquarters in Mandaluyong City.

"It is my honor to serve the Filipino people during this critical juncture in our history. As budget and management secretary, I will do my utmost to live up to the trust placed in me by the President-elect and craft responsive budget and management policies that will support our rebuilding efforts from the pandemic," Pangandaman said in a statement.

Pangandaman has a degree in Economics from the Far Eastern University (FEU), a diploma and master’s degree in Development Economics from the University of the Philippines (UP), and is currently pursuing her Executive Master of Public Administration from the London School of Economics.

As the incoming DBM chief, Pangandaman offers diversity and fresh perspective to an otherwise male- dominated team of economic technocrats.

At the same time, Pangandaman is not new to the budget process. She once served as undersecretary at the DBM during the Duterte administration.

Acting as head of the functional group of the Office of the DBM Secretary, she directly supervised the Department Liaison Office and Budget Technical Bureau. During her stint there, she pushed for crucial budget reforms and was a key mover in the preparation, implementation, and monitoring of the General Appropriations Act (GAA).

A briefer on Pangandaman read: "A Maranao with roots from the south, Pangandaman always aims to give Mindanao a voice in her capacity as a public servant in the different branches of government.

"Having served in the legislative, executive, and in the central bank, she has a unique perspective on the Philippine bureaucracy and a deep understanding of the interplay among the different sectors and agencies in the economic sector."

Pangandaman is currently BSP’s concurrent assistant governor for strategic communication and advocacy and executive offices coordinator. In that capacity, she’s a key implementor of BSP’s strategic initiatives aimed at bringing the central bank closer to the Filipino people.

She also championed financial inclusion and digital transformation, and steered the execution of major projects supporting the Governor’s goals within and outside the halls of the BSP.

She also oversaw the implementation of Green, Green, Green—a budget assistance program for local government units to develop sustainable public open spaces.

Prior to her appointment to the DBM, she oversaw the enactment of budget laws as chief-of-staff to the late Senate President Edgardo Angara and then-Committee on Finance Chairperson Senator Loren Legarda.

"The pandemic was a challenge like no other in the way it stretched our resources and set us back on our goals as a nation. My team and I vow to work with the rest of the economic team and continue the policies and reforms that we have long fought for. We will strive to ensure prudent and transparent use of public funds in a way that allows us to regain lost ground while also uplifting the lives of the ordinary Filipino," Pangandaman said.