The government has programmed ₱419.9 billion in infrastructure spending for the third quarter, the biggest quarterly infra disbursement for 2025, at a time when allegedly fraudulent flood control projects are taking the spotlight amid concerns about some wasteful and corruption-laden public expenditures.

The national government’s quarterly fiscal program, approved by the Cabinet-level Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) last June, showed that following ₱317.5 billion in infrastructure spending in the first quarter, higher disbursements of ₱400.5 billion and ₱374.9 billion are targeted for the second and fourth quarters, respectively.

Based on historical DBCC data, the third-quarter infrastructure spending plan is the second-highest quarterly allotment ever, only exceeded by the ₱421.3-billion infrastructure program for the second quarter of 2024.

The DBCC defines the infrastructure program as inclusive of the national government’s infra disbursements, infrastructure components of subsidy and equity to government-owned and/or -controlled corporations (GOCCs), and transfers to local government units (LGUs).

In all, the government is spending a total of ₱1.51 trillion on public infrastructure development this year, equivalent to 5.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

As Manila Bulletin reported earlier, the Marcos Jr. administration plans to further ramp up infrastructure spending in 2026, with a record ₱1.56 trillion set aside for its centerpiece “Build Better More” (BBM) program under the proposed ₱6.793-trillion 2026 national budget.

The 2026 infrastructure program is equivalent to 5.1 percent of GDP, lower than the programmed 2025 ratio and the 5.8 percent recorded in 2024.

The annual budget for public infrastructure spending is projected to increase to new highs of ₱1.69 trillion in 2027 and over ₱1.9 trillion in 2028, 2026 budget documents showed.

For foreign-assisted projects, including infrastructure, Budget Secretary and DBCC Co-Chair Amenah F. Pangandaman last week assured that loan proceeds and the Philippine government’s counterpart financing are already incorporated in the respective budgets of implementing agencies.

Based on 2026 budget documents, a total of ₱283.3 billion in foreign-assisted projects will be covered by funding under the proposed 2026 national budget.

Of this amount, over ₱82 billion in counterpart government financing will support ₱201.3 billion in loan proceeds.

Next year’s funding for foreign-assisted projects is more than four times larger than the just over ₱66-billion program for this year, composed of ₱30.7 billion in counterpart public funds and ₱35.3 billion in loan proceeds.

“More than the budget, we should also push agencies to work double time so we can stick to our project timelines,” Pangandaman told Manila Bulletin when asked if the 2026 budget proposal would put a stop to project delays.

In particular, Pangandaman said right-of-way (ROW) acquisitions, which she noted are among the common project bottlenecks, should be hastened.

The 2026 budget proposal has set aside ₱4 billion for the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Strategic Support Fund, which will cover payment of fees, charges, or any expenses to be incurred for ROW acquisitions and transfer of land titles during the rollout of priority PPP infrastructure projects.

The peak in government infrastructure spending in the third quarter coincides with the highest-ever quarterly disbursement program, amounting to ₱1.6 trillion for the July to September period, DBCC data showed.

After total disbursements reached over ₱1.44 trillion in the first quarter, the DBCC programmed public spending of ₱1.59 trillion in the second quarter and ₱1.44 trillion in the fourth quarter.

Government spending on public goods and services, amounting to ₱6.08 trillion for the entire 2025, would be equivalent to 21.4 percent of GDP.

As for revenues, tax and non-tax collections were expected to have peaked at ₱1.28 trillion in the second quarter of 2025, in line with the annual April tax-filing and payments deadline.

Revenues are also expected to rise from ₱998.2 billion in the first quarter to over ₱1.1 trillion in the third quarter and ₱1.13 trillion in the fourth quarter.

Fourth-quarter revenues would be supported by over ₱4.2 billion in privatization earnings before year-end, the DBCC document showed.

Total tax and non-tax revenues are projected to hit ₱4.52 trillion this year, equivalent to 15.9 percent of GDP.

In line with this quarterly fiscal program for 2025, the budget deficit is expected to have narrowed to ₱314.7 billion in the second quarter from the first quarter’s over ₱446 billion, before widening further to ₱495.2 billion in the third quarter and easing to the smallest quarterly deficit for the year, at ₱305.9 billion, in the fourth quarter.

The latest Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) data showed that the actual end-June fiscal deficit of ₱765.5 billion was 0.63-percent wider than the programmed ₱760.7-billion shortfall for the first half of 2025.

The end-2025 budget deficit program of ₱1.56 trillion is equivalent to 5.5 percent of GDP.