The Cebu Provincial Board has approved on first reading the Executive Department’s proposed budget in the amount of P25 billion for 2025.
The budget proposal by the executive department, headed by Gov. Gwen Garcia, represents an 8.7% increase from the approved budget of P23 billion for this year 2024 — marking the biggest budget proposal in the history of Cebu Province.
Board Member Glenn Anthony Soco, chair of the committee on budget and appropriations, said funding sources for the budget include P6 billion from the National Tax Allocation, and other locally sourced income from local taxation, such as real property and quarry taxes. The Province will also tap into its varied revenue sources from various profitable investments and economic enterprises with the private sector.
“We are just most proud that the Province of Cebu has found ways on how to be able to increase its income sources nga maka-allocate ta og more projects and programs as contained in our Annual Investment Plan (AIP),” Board Member Soco told 𝗦𝘂𝗴𝗯𝗼𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 after the regular session on Monday, October 21.
“Dako gyod kaayo nato nga ipasigarbo nga we remained to be the Number One Province,” he added.
A huge chunk of the proposed budget, at P14 billion, is allocated as AIP for development and infrastructure projects, which was earlier approved by the Provincial Development Council in a meeting on October 15.
It includes, among others, a 3.8-billion-peso allocation for the health and medical services in Capitol-run hospitals; P3.5 billion for the continuous road and bridge infrastructure development and solar street lighting projects; while P3.3 billion is allotted for the province’s bulk water system program in an initial 25 LGUs.
The PB also adopted and approved the proposed resolution for the budget of the Cebu Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan in the amount of P371 million; and the Gender and Development Plan in the amount of P1.250 billion. | JMT
