The Department of Finance (DOF) declared that there is no apparent need to make revisions in the budget deficit ceiling and economic growth projection for 2009, despite the devastation brought by typhoon Ondoy. Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said that there is no need to move the budget deficit upward to make way for rehabilitation efforts, since provisions in the national budget for calamity funds have already been made. He also stated that it will not disturb economic growth because the affected areas are not crop-inducing provinces. Another reason would be that there are only a few months left before the year ends and revisions are “usually up to the middle of the year”, according to Beltran, and that the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) is unlikely to make any changes to the latest numbers since the year is almost over.

Meanwhile, in other news in budget and finance, the Department of Science and Technology (DoST) will suffer from a budget 16% smaller than its existing one next year. The Department of Budget and Management (DBM), headed by a Cabinet member said to be seeking an elective post next year, cut the DoST budget to only P4.2 billion, inciting complaints from some department officials. One main sector which would suffer from this decision would be the already ailing operations within the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), which is under the jurisdiction of the DoST. Another major sector that would be affected by the budget-slashing would be the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) in Cotabato City, whose existing P9.9 billion slashed to budget will be downsized to P9.8 billion, according to regional officials. The regional government has earlier proposed P12 million “to fund vital projects for the region’s poor residents.”

The government, despite its efforts to keep its deficits from exceeding the targeted amount, has been receiving stark criticisms for its excess spending on other less essential expenses such as President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s lavish foreign trips and the excess use of pork barrel funds.

References:

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=510002&publicationSubCategoryId=66 http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/regions/view/20091002-227938/DoST-to-get-smaller-budget

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The real importance of budgeting becomes a debatable topic amongst finance managers and businessmen. Some managements see budgeting as a key discipline without which financial confusion would result. Others see budgeting as out of date – quite unsuitable to the rapidly changing business world of the 21st century when so much business value comes from so-called “intangible” activities of the knowledge age.

The Entrepreneurs Accounting Academy offers a Budgeting and Forecasting Seminar which will explore the basic essentials of budgeting and consider a generic step-by-step process of budgeting. Also, we will explore the newer developments and focus upon the modern budgetary tools that have emerged during the last decade or so. This course is aimed at delegates who are, or soon will be, actively involved in budgeting and who want to understand how to make this management tool work to best effect in their organization.