The city government of Makati has allocated more than P8 billion for its social development program next year, Mayor Abigail Binay said Friday.
Health, education and social welfare programs will get the biggest chunk from the P18- billion budget in 2020, which was signed by the city chief executive hours after members of the City Council approved the measure on third and final reading on Thursday.
Binay, who had certified the budget’s approval as urgent, said the 2020 budget reflected the priority thrusts and policies of her administration.
The programs and services under the Social Development Sector got the biggest allocation of about P8.07 billion or 44.7 percent of the total budget of P18,047,460,000.
Based on the approved 2020 budget of the city, Health got the biggest share of the total budget among the social sub-sectors, with P5.26 billion (29.17 percent), followed by Education with P1.43 billion (7.93 percent), and Social Welfare with P1.37 billion (7.59 percent).
“Our overarching goal is to provide citizens with fast and free access to quality health care, education, and social services which are indispensable to their overall development,” Binay said.
Binay said the city government had adhered to its ‘people first’ principle amid efforts to accelerate the city’s digital transformation through embracing modern technology. She cited public-private partnerships as an effective strategy to make progress with the city’s vision without compromising the city’s financial capacity to sustain priority programs.
“We have purposely teamed up with industry leaders in the private sector to implement digital initiatives without incurring added costs on the city coffers. The PPP strategy has allowed us to continue making substantial investments in social programs and services that enable Makatizens to reach their full potential and become not only self-reliant members of society but empowered partners in nation-building,” said Binay.
The mayor thanked the City Council, led by Vice Mayor Monique Lagdameo, for approving the 2020 executive budget through City Ordinance 2019-A-110.
“The prompt approval of the budget has ensured that our beloved Makatizens will continue to receive timely and adequate services from the city in 2020. We are also optimistic about meeting our timelines for the implementation of new and continuing programs and projects,” Mayor Binay said.
Prior to the enactment of the appropriations ordinance, the Sangguniang Panlungsod through its Committee on Laws, Rules and Ethics and Committee on Appropriations and Budget had conducted a series of meetings for the Joint Committee Deliberation/Review of the proposed budget of each of the 36 city departments and offices from Oct. 28 to Nov. 5 at city hall.
Major health programs lined up for 2020 under the Makati Health Department include the Drug Subsidy (Libreng Gamot para sa Mamamayan) with P1.27 billion; Communicable Disease Prevention and Control, P104.94 million; Maternal and Child Care Program, P12.03 million; Comprehensive Dental Health Program, P10.41 million; and Environmental Health and Sanitation Program, P7.33 million.
Under Ospital ng Makati, a total of P2.21 billion has been allotted for Patients Care and other related programs.
Major programs of the Makati Veterinary Services Department for Animal Health and related public health initiatives have a combined total of P12.10 million.
For the Education sub-sector, major programs of the Education Department include Talent Optimization Program for Students, P12.21 million; Makatizen Scholarship Program, P5.6 million; SPEED for SPED, P8.55 million; Assistance to SPED students, P4.5 million; Alternative Learning System, P10.14 million; and Gawad Parangal, P26.80 million.
The University of Makati has earmarked P60.36 million for its Student Development Program; P24.3 million for Student Resources Enhancement Program; P11.69 million for Educational Excellence Program; P6.7 million for IT projects; and P2.97 million for the Makati Training Placement and Livelihood Consortia, among others.
Under the Social Welfare sub-sector, P338.76 million has been allocated for cash gifts of senior citizens and centenarians, burial assistance and registration under the Blu Card Program, and another P94.27 million for other Blu Card benefits including free movies, cakes on their birthdays and golden wedding anniversary, and free tours.
Other major social welfare programs include Makati Lingkod Bayan Caravan with a budget of P16.81 million; Informal Settlements Reduction and Management, P14.34 million; Universal Health Insurance, P70 million; Disaster Relief Assistance, P10.53 million; and PWD Welfare and Social Enhancement, P10.81 million.