Budget reform in the Philippines : making the budget a tool for national transformation / edited by Ronald U. Mendoza, David G. Timberman

Includes bibliographical references and index.

The significance of budget reform in the Philippines / Ronald U. Mendoza and David G. Timberman -- The institutional, political, and economic context for budget reform / Ronald U. Mendoza and David G. Timberman -- The budget as an instrument for governance reform / Florencio B. Abad -- Congressional oversight, the power of the purse, presidential prerogatives, and pork barrel / Ronald D. Holmes -- Government "underspending" in perspective / Toby C. Monsod -- Rearranging local-central government relations / Perigine M. Cayadong [and three others] -- Civil society and governance reform / Filomeno S. Sta. Ana III and David G. Timberman -- Aquino-era budget and PFM reforms / Ronald U. Mendoza and David G. Timberman.

Budger reform—both planned and unplanned—provides a critically important prism into Philippine politics during the presidency of Benigno S. Aquino III (2010-2016). On the one hand, the administration chalked up significant (albeit incomplete) achievements in its ambitious agenda of public financial management reform. On the other hand, a pork barrel scandal from the previous administration, combined with controversy over the Aquino administration's own "disbursement acceleration program," induced even more sweeping reform of budget processes as imposed by order of the Supreme Court. Through its excellent analysis of the dynamics of Aquino-era budget reform, this volume contributes keen insights into executive-legislative relations, the challenge of bureaucratic reform, and participatory local governance. It is thus required reading for understanding the political dynamics of the Aquino administration. -- Back cover.

In English.