Davao, Leyte lead roster of LGUs seeking BSP nod for P11.4-B loans
Substantially fewer local government units (LGUs) across the country approached the debt market for loans in the second half of last year, with the bulk of these applications coming from the Davao Region, according to the central bank.
In a statement, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said it only received 71 requests for Monetary Board opinion concerning the proposed domestic borrowings of local governments in the second semester of 2019, for a total amount of P11.4 billion.
“These number and amount of local government unit requests for Monetary Board opinions were lower by 54 percent and 65 percent, respectively, from 154 requests received amounting to P32.2 billion in the first semester of 2019,” the central bank said.
The requests processed during the period in review came from 11 provinces, five cities and 55 municipalities, the agency added.
Of the total number of requests, 54 or 41.2 percent received approvals from the Monetary Board, with a total loan amount of P9.3 billion. The processing of the remaining 17 requests were deferred due to incomplete documents or information submitted.
Region-wise, the largest number of requests that were rendered a favorable opinion came from the Davao Region at 16.7 percent of the total, with the loans mostly earmarked for infrastructure projects, acquisition of heavy equipment and purchase of lots.
The single biggest loan application during the period came from Leyte province, which wanted to borrow P900 million for the construction of a new provincial government complex, including the cost of site development.
This was followed by the application for approval for a P686.2-million loan by Bataan province for the construction of road networks, flood control system, school buildings, hospitals and health centers, among others.
The requirement for government entities, including LGUs, to request for the prior opinion of the Monetary Board for their proposed borrowings is mandated under the New Central Bank Act of 1993. INQ
