NIA’S 2015 BUDGET GETS A NOD FROM CONGRESS

MANILA-The proposed P28.824-billion budgetary support  for the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) under the National Expenditure Program (NEP), which forms 90% of the total NIA budget, has been approved by the House of Representatives during the budget plenary sponsored by Ilocos Sur 2^nd District Representative Eric D. Singson on September 23, 2014.

The NIA – which has been placed under the supervision of the Office of the President’s Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization (PAFSAM) headed by Secretary Francis N. Pangilinan together with the National Food Authority (NFA), Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), and Fertilizer and Pesticides Authority (FPA – satisfactorily addressed the inquiries of the House members  and provided sufficient justifications pushing Singson to move for the approval of the agency’s budget. However, NFA was scheduled for another plenary.

Bulk of the budgetary support the agency will receive from the government, or 57%, amounting to P16.614 billion is allocated for locally-funded projects (LFPs). LFPs include small reservoir irrigation projects, small pump irrigation projects, feasibility studies and detailed engineering, Grassroots Participatory Budgeting Projects (GPBP), Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (PAMANA) Program, and other major irrigation projects such as the Casecnan  Multipurpose Irrigation and Power Project Phase II (CMIPP-II), Balog-Balog Multipurpose Irrigation Project Phase II (BBMP-II), Malinao Dam Improvement Project (MDIP), Malitubog-Maridagao Irrigation Project Phase II (MMIP-II), and Umayam River Irrigation Project (URIP).

NIA’s Operations, which include Irrigation Network Services (estension/expansion and restoration/rehabilitation of existing projects, climate change adaptation works, Irrigation Management Transfer Support Services, and Payment of Right-of-Way and Completion works & unpaid claims) and Construction of irrigation projects and repair of systems, claims 27% of the allocation amounting to P7.710 billion.

The remaining amount went to the agency’s foreign-assisted projects (P2.279 billion or 8%); general administration and support (P1.643 billion or 6%); and support to operations (P.578 billion or 2%).

The other 10% of the total NIA budget falls under the corporate funds amounting to P3.205 billion making the overall NIA budget P32.029 billion.