The Philippine government is seeking a record 4.3 trillion pesos (85.97 billion USD) budget for 2021, focusing on reviving a coronavirus-hit economy.

Illustrative image (Photo: zdnet.com)

The draft budget, set to be submitted to the Congress when it resumes meeting next month, is 5 percent higher than this year’s 4.1 trillion pesos, said Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado.

Next year’s spending is geared toward further buttressing the healthcare system, ensuring food security, hastening the government’s digital transformation, and helping communities to rebound.

The proposed budget is separate from a 1.3 trillion peso stimulus bill that the lower house passed early this month, and another stimulus plan under discussion at the Senate.

It would help the government move past the pandemic and provide the kind of programmes, activities and projects for people, especially those who lost their jobs, Avisado said.

The administration of President Rodrigo Duterte faces the enormous task of resuscitating growth and creating jobs in 2021, before his six-year term ends in June of the following year.

The Southeast Asian country, which used to enjoy one of the world’s fastest economic growth rates before the coronavirus wreaked havoc on global business, is projected to suffer a decline of 2-3.4 percent in gross domestic product this year.

Source: VNA