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2012 natl budget to focus on infra, social services


The Aquino administration is set to prioritize spending on social services and infrastructure in its 2012 budget, a cabinet official said on Monday. Budget and Management Secretary Florencio Abad said the P1.8 trillion expenditure plan for 2012 — up 12 percent year-on-year — will still be in line with government's fiscal consolidation efforts. The plan is for government to narrow down its fiscal deficit to 2.6 percent of the gross domestic product in 2012. “The social services sector will continue to receive the lion’s share of more than 30 percent of the national budget, or more than P500 billion," Abad said. "To support escalated efforts for social protection, basic education and public healthcare, the sector will receive a budgetary increase of 8 to 12 percent," he added. The economic services sector, meanwhile, will be allotted a quarter of the total budget, or roughly P400 billion, pushing infrastructure and other capital spending upward by 20 percent. Abad said the 2012 budget will also see a reduction in debt burden by about 2 to 4 percentage points. Government remains committed to the zero-based budgeting approach, which seeks to eliminate spending programs not in sync with the administration's social program, he added. —JMT/VS, GMA News

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