IN a ceremony at the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday, June 25, Philippine government officials led by Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Acting Secretary Kim Robert de Leon, along with ADB President Masato Kanda and other ADB officials, formally launched the Philippines’ Public Financial Management (PFM) Reforms Roadmap 2024–2028. This project, which was initiated by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. through Executive Order (EO) 29 on June 1, 2023, is part of the quieter, unexciting side of fighting corruption and inefficiency in the country. Gadflies such as failed former Senate president Alan Peter Cayetano may attract public attention with accusations that the administration is trying to stall efforts to hold mulcting officials accountable for the massive flood control scandal, but this work of reform is unquestionably more important, and should be highlighted.
Under EO 29, the DBM, Department of Finance, Bureau of Treasury and Commission on Audit (COA) formed a PFM committee to develop the PFM Reforms Roadmap, with the overall goal to streamline financial management systems in order to improve the overall delivery of public services. The process of formulating the road map took a considerable amount of time; the work got started in September 2023, and it was a full year until the draft road map was completed and delivered to the president.
Following that, the government in 2025 underwent a Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability assessment, along with reviews of how public spending addresses climate change, gender equality, disaster resilience and the needs of children. These reviews pinpointed strengths, gaps and weak spots, and the findings shaped the updated road map and action plan. During this phase of the work, the ADB supported the initiative and the actual reform work that will follow through a $500-million loan to the government.
The PFM Reforms Roadmap identifies 11 strategic focus areas in which action needs to be taken. These include planning and budgeting linkage; cash management; public asset management; accounting and auditing; PFM capacity development; digital PFM; PFM policy and legal framework; public procurement; disaster risk reduction and management; PFM for local government units; and monitoring and evaluation for public expenditure.
While the road map acknowledges gains from earlier reform measures, it highlights six “critical challenges that hinder the optimal performance of public finances.” These are: the lack of clear traceability across the Philippine Development Plan and its results matrixes, public investment program and the approved budget; weak cash programming methodologies and systems; continued dependence on manual procedures, documents and reporting requirements despite multiple information and communication technology systems in place; weak monitoring and evaluation for development programs; excessive administrative burden on implementing agencies for addressing redundant reporting requirements of oversight agencies; and a siloed approach toward the design and implementation of interventions across oversight and implementing agencies.
From those, 41 “interventions” and 52 “activities” were developed, of which 13 were considered both important enough and feasible to be carried out right away. According to the PFM road map, these were supposed to have been started in 2024, but owing to the extended time taken for consultations with various stakeholders, most of that work has been delayed, although some of it has gotten off the ground. The actions that have been prioritized are mainly concerned with aligning local, regional, and national planning and budgeting; plugging gaps in cash management and disbursements; and strengthening internal audit guidelines issued by the DBM and COA so that the rules are uniform and more transparent.
Direct accountability for corruption is, of course, a critical priority, and it is understandable if the apparent slow pace of that is frustrating to some. The broader reforms in the PFM road map are as critical if not an even bigger priority, however, because they address the loopholes and inefficiencies that enabled the flood control corruption to flourish in the first place. Justly punishing crimes that have been committed is far less effective when the underlying conditions that allowed the crime to happen are not corrected.
Beyond the fight against corruption, the country has long been handicapped with inefficiencies and poor processes that have slowed development and the implementation of much-needed programs. As World Bank Global Director for Governance Arturo Herrera Gutiérrez, who was also present at the PFM launch event on Thursday said, the reforms will reinforce the social contract between government and citizens by ensuring that taxes translate into quality public services.