Philippines plans US$23.7b fund-raising for budget, infrastructure projects

Manila

THE Philippines aims to raise US$23.71 billion from external sources to bridge a planned budget deficit and fund priority projects this year, including US$5.5 billion from the commercial markets, the Department of Finance (DOF) said on Sunday.

The amount is 39 per cent higher than the US$17.01 billion the government raised from external sources last year for key infrastructure projects and for helping bridge a wider budget deficit due to state spending on Covid-19 response measures.

A total of US$8.06 billion of this year's amount will be for budget support purposes, while the balance of US$15.65 billion will be for project financing, the DOF said in a statement.

This year's budget of 4.5 trillion pesos (S$125 billion), the country's largest yet, is intended to bankroll an economic recovery and fund the purchase of millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccines.

The government is targeting full-year growth of 6.5-7.5 per cent for the pandemic-hit economy, which contracted by a record 9.5 per cent last year.

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This year the government plans to secure US$7.67 billion in loans and grants from multilateral institutions, US$10.54 billion from bilateral sources, and US$5.5 billion from the debt markets, the DOF said.

Last year, it secured US$7.73 billion from multilateral lenders, US$2.86 billion from bilateral partners, and US$6.47 billion from commercial markets.

Of the total external financing contracted in 2020, around US$15.44 billion was for emergency requirements for the government's Covid-19 response, while US$1.62 billion was for other initiatives including infrastructure projects. REUTERS