For the period January to March 2024, the Monetary Board approved a total of US$2.87 billion of public sector foreign borrowings, which are 48 percent lower than the US$5.56 billion approved in the same period in 2023. These consist of two (2) project loans aggregating to US$0.85 billion, and five (5) program loans aggregating to US$2.02 billion.
These borrowings will fund the National Government’s projects on infrastructure (US$0.85 billion) and programs on policy reforms in health care (US$0.91 billion), digital transformation (US$0.41 billion), tax administration (US$0.40 billion), and inclusive finance development (US$0.30 billion).
Under Section 20, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines, prior approval of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, through its Monetary Board, is required for all foreign loans to be contracted or guaranteed by the Republic of the Philippines. Similarly, Letter of Instructions No. 158 dated 21 January 1974 requires all foreign borrowing proposals by the National Government, government agencies and government financial institutions to be submitted for approval-in-principle by the Monetary Board before commencement of actual negotiations. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas promotes the judicious use of the resources and ensures that external debt requirements are at manageable levels, to support external debt sustainability.
