Gov’t 2022 debt down as economy recovers

THE continued recovery of the domestic economy, along with the strengthening of the Philippine peso against the US dollar, helped reduce the peso value of the national government’s (NG) total liabilities by end-2022 to P13.42 trillion compared to the previous month’s.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said Thursday the fullyear NG debt went down by P225.31 billion, or 1.7 percent, from P13.64 trillion by endNovember last year, also due to the net redemption of domestic government securities (GS).

However, NG debt grew by 14.4 percent, or P1.69 trillion, compared to P11.73 trillion in end-2021.

Of the total, domestic debt accounted for 68.62 percent of the total debt last year amounting to P9.21 trillion.

Domestic debt declined by 2.3 percent, or P219.58 billion, compared to P9.43 trillion as of end-November last year.

The BTr attributed the decline to the net redemption of P217.95 billion worth of GS and the peso appreciation, which reduced by P1.63 billion the peso value of foreign currency- denominated liabilities.

Foreign debt accounted for 31.38 percent of NG liabilities amounting to P4.21 trillion as of end-2022, lower by P5.73 billion from the end-November 2022 level.

It has increased by P652.34 billion since the start of 2022, it said.

The BTr said currency adjustments due to the appreciation of the peso against the dollar reduced the foreign debt by P58.34 billion.

It said the improvement of the level of NG debt last December and the continued robust growth of the domestic economy resulted in the decline of the country’s debt-to-GDP level.

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 7.2 percent in the last quarter of 2022 and by 7.6 percent for the full year.

The share of NG liabilities to domestic output went down to 60.9 percent as of end2022 from 63.7 percent at the end of the third quarter last year and is lower than the 61.8 percent target in the government’s medium-term fiscal framework.

“This reflects the consistent drive to bolster debt sustainability through prudent cash and debt management backed by resurgent economic growth,” the BTr said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said he expects the sustained growth of the domestic economy and the impact of tax and other fiscal reform measures to be of advantage to the improvement in the share of debt to economic growth.

“More disciplined government spending would help further reduce/improve the debt-to-GDP ratio to below the 60 percent international threshold to help sustain the country’s favorable credit ratings at 1-3 notches above the minimum investment grade,” he said in a report on Thursday.

Ricafort said government debt is expected to further increase in the coming months in line with the government’s

Public Roads as Public Goods: Importance of Promoting Road Safety

By: Michael Bonn A. Bonifacio BA Faculty, College of Business and Management Central Mindanao University

Gone are the days when most town people made use of a traditional type of transportation. These are helpful but somehow less productive. Nowadays, we can see a lot of farm-to-market roads that allow our farmers’ products and goods to be delivered in the markets for customers to consume them fresh and at a lesser price due to manageable labor services. This is one of the reasons why we have to promote safety on our public roads. It is one main picture of development connecting places, businesses, people, and communities.

There are several Philippine laws that emphasize safety on our roads. For example, is this Land Transportation and Traffic Code or Republic Act. No. 4136 and Road Speed Limiter Act of 2016 or Republic Act No. 10916 regulate speed limits to avoid reckless driving and accidents on the road. This will help preserve human life as well as prevent road damage. Another is Republic Act No. 917 which is an act that provides an effective highway, administration, and modify apportionment of highway funds. This act seeks to aid provinces, chartered cities, and municipalities in the construction of roads and streets.

We make use of our roads by being on time to the office since we have vehicles to pass through safe roads. Our kids can go to school safely and securely because we know the streets they are paving allow walking to be safe and accident-free. The roads we have in our communities can be translated into opportunities for us and progress to our place. We have to continuously preserve the roads for they affect our way of life.

The BusinessWeek Mindanao is published by BusinessWeek Mindanao Corporation every Monday to Friday with office address at Tanleh Building, Abellanosa, Cagayan de Oro City. It is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission under Company Registration No. CS201531633 with BIR Certificate of Registration No. 2RC0000831068, TIN No. 463-826-272-000 – VAT. Reg., and with Business Permit No. 2020-04015. Tel. Nos.: (088)856-3344, (088) 810-100, 0923-4320687, 0917-7121424

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I Hope You Dance (Part 1)

Think a minute… In 1972 Life magazine published a story about the true adventures of John Goddard. When he was 15-yearsold John heard his grandmother sadly say: “If only I had done that when I was young…” At that moment, John determined not to have regrets at the end of his life, so he wrote down 127 goals for his life.

He named 10 rivers he wanted to explore and 17 mountains he wanted to climb. He wanted to read the entire Bible, Encyclopedia Britannica, plus everything written by Shakespeare, Plato, Aristotle and other famous authors. He wanted to marry and have children. Professionally he wanted to pursue a career in medicine, as a pilot, and also serve as a missionary. Sound impossible? Already at the age of 47, John Goddard had accomplished 103 of his 127 goals!

You may not have as many goals as John Goddard. But if you do not have any goals in your life, you will not have much motivation to get up in the morning, nor will you have much satisfaction at the end of each day—let alone at the end of your life.

However, living life to the fullest is not only about achieving goals of activities and tasks. This is a letter written by an 83-year-old woman to her friend.

“Dear Bertha, I’m reading more and cleaning the house less. I’m enjoying the view without worrying about the weeds in the garden. I’m spending more time