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MANILA, Philippines — The proposed P6.793-trillion budget for 2026 allocates major increases to education, healthcare, transportation and infrastructure, with education receiving the highest priority under the National Expenditure Program (NEP).
A third of the NEP, or 34.1%, has been set aside for the social services sector — which includes education, health and social protection — amounting to P2.314 trillion, Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said on Wednesday, August 13.
Breaking this down, the lion’s share of the sector’s budget was proposed for priority projects under education, culture and manpower development at P1.194 trillion. This is followed by healthcare with P331.4 billion and then by social security, welfare and employment with P295.5 billion.
Education
Pangandaman said that the executive branch proposed an allocation of P1.224 trillion for basic and higher education, which is around P168 billion higher than the sector’s budget for 2025.
“While we always met the constitutional mandate to assign the highest budgetary priority to education, I am proud to announce today that for the first time, the budget for basic and higher education has been increased monumentally to meet UNESCO’s recommended spending target of at least 4% of the country’s GDP,” she said during a press briefing at the House of Representatives.
The proposed P1.224 trillion budget is broken down into the following:
- Department of Education: P928.52 billion
- State Universities and Colleges (SUCs): P134.99 billion
- Special Education Fund: P66.86 billion
- Commission on Higher Education: P34 billion
- BARMM - Basic, Higher and Technical Education: P30.27 billion
- Technical Education and Skills Development Authority: P20.24 billion
- Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) - Feeding Program: P6.11 billion
- Department of Science and Technology (DOST) - Philippine Science High School (PSHS): P3.05 billion
- Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) - Early Childhood Care and Development Council (ECCDC): P357.1 million
DepEd’s budget rose by around 18% compared to the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA), while SUCs by 6%.
Public works
While not the most funded in the NEP, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) remains among the most heavily funded agencies, with a proposed budget of P881.31 billion for 2026.
This is lower than its 2025 allocation of about P1.034 trillion, when it ranked as the single largest budget recipient.
For 2026, DepEd is set to take the top spot, with a proposed P928.52 billion allocation — only if Congress does not move some of its funds to other agencies.
Education and infrastructure funding were among the most debated issues in the 2025 national budget, with the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) slashing the budget of some DepEd programs compared to what was proposed in the 2025 NEP.
This comes as the Constitution mandates the government to make education its top budgetary priority.
Infrastructure remains one of the top budget priorities due to the Build Better More Program, which targets expansion and upgrades, accounting for 5% of gross domestic product.
The P1.556 trillion proposal spans 54 flagship projects, from the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge to the Metro Manila Subway, and boosts the DOTr’s budget to P197.3 billion, triple its current allocation.
Digital, social and energy infrastructure are also on the priority list, with ICT and digitalization poised to receive around P87.33 billion.
Health
Meanwhile, for the health sector, Pangandaman said the proposed budget has increased by 23.6%, with government subsidies for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) funding the country’s Universal Health Care included.
This includes P53.3 billion for the National Health Insurance Program, also known as PhilHealth’s government subsidy, after it was removed from the 2025 budget.
It is meant to fund indirect contributions which are allocated for marginalized groups such as the indigent, seniors, and persons with disabilities in the availability of PhilHealth's packages. It is also used for zero-balance billing.
The Department of Health’s (DOH) hospitals in Metro Manila were also allotted a proposed P27.7 billion, up 20.2% from 2025, while DOH regional hospitals have a proposed allocation of P99.5 billion, a 26.1% increase.
This makes health the third-largest proposed budget allocation, but still billions short compared to public works and education.
Other priorities
Other major allocations at a department level in the proposed 2026 budget include P299.3 billion for the Department of National Defense (DND), P287.48 billion for the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and P239.16 billion for the Department of Agriculture (DA).
The DSWD, meanwhile, has a proposed budget of P227.05 billion, with P3.601 billion allotted for the National Commission of Senior Citizens.
The Department of Tourism (DOT), on the other hand, is proposed to get P198.60 billion, the Judiciary P67.94 billion, and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) P55.22 billion.
The 2026 NEP is about 7.4% higher than the 2025 budget, which was slashed, substantially criticized and challenged for questionable appropriations.
Congress seeks to redeem itself by conducting more transparent budget deliberations, opening the bicameral conference committee meetings to the public and engaging more closely with civil society organizations.
