Philippines to allocate $875 for military modernisation plan in 2025

Manila, Aug 18 (IANS) The Philippines will allocate 50 billion pesos ($875 million) to fund the modernisation program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in 2025, a member of the House of Representatives said on Sunday.

In the 2025 national budget, the sum of 50 billion pesos in capital outlays has been earmarked to be used exclusively to support the funding requirements of the AFP's ongoing modernisation projects, reports Xinhua news agency, quoting Representative Johnny Pimentel.

"This amount is 25 per cent, 10 billion pesos ($175 million) higher than the appropriation for acquiring and upgrading military hardware and systems in the 2024 budget," Pimentel said.

Last month, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) submitted the proposed 2025 budget, or national expenditure program, to the House of Representatives for scrutiny.

The proposed 2025 budget amounts to 6.352 trillion pesos ($111 billion), equivalent to 22 per cent of the gross domestic product and 10.1 per cent higher than the 2024 national budget.

The House of Representatives and the Senate will scrutinise the proposed 2025 budget before Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos signs the bill into law.

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