The Philippines aims to advance its digital transformation initiatives through the release of the Notice of Cash Allocation (NCA). The online NCA was inaugurated during the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and three authorised government servicing banks: Land Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Philippine Veterans Bank.
The DBM’s Action Document Releasing System (ADRS) will be used to make the NCAs available online. The ADRS is a web-based programme that allows approved DBM action documents to be distributed in digital format directly to recipient agencies’ authorised users. DBM Secretary, Amenah F. Pangandaman, said that the MoA is proof of the government’s continued commitment to achieving bureaucratic efficiency.
“Releasing these documents in digital format may seem like a small step but this is a crucial digitalisation initiative as it will not only improve ease of doing business; it will also bring us an estimated cost savings of around Php 2.8 million per month or around Php 33 million per year with the reduced costs for security paper, printing, supplies and transportation expenses for physical claiming of documents by agency representatives,” she clarified.
According to DBM Information and Technology Group Undersecretary, Maria Francesca del Rosario, the online release of NCAs Philippines promoted greater transparency and efficiency by eliminating unnecessary steps. Paper waste is also reduced by physically signing, routing, and photocopying Action Documents.
Per the agreement, the Land Bank, DBP and Philippine Veterans’ Bank will credit the corresponding Modified Disbursement Scheme (MDS) sub-accounts and make funds available to relevant organisations upon the digital release of NCAs from the DBM.
Reynaldo Capa, First Vice President of LandBank of the Philippines, expressed their commitment to making the process of releasing NCA more streamlined and effective to provide immediate, transparent, and efficient public service. Landbank is eager to assist national government agencies in improving their expenditure performance to complete critical programmes, operations, and projects in the shortest time possible through the digitalisation initiative.
Edwin Amahan, Branch Banking Group Head of Philippine Veterans Bank, also committed support. He gave credit to young administrators who can perform wonders in public administration through the initiative. Executive Vice President of the Development Bank of the Philippines, George Inocencio, also praised the agreement with DBM that would promote the more efficient distribution of funds to government agencies.
The concept has also received the full support of Anti-Red Tape Chief Information Officer Deputy Director General for Operations Ernesto Perez. They are prepared to assist in connecting government agencies following the mandate of the law.
Eduardo Anthony G. Mario, OIC-Deputy Treasurer of the Philippines, thought of NCA as the most fundamental component of Philippine budget execution. According to him, the system handles virtually all public-sector payments and is the primary means by which the national government conducts financial management and monitoring. As a result, digitalisation is an essential procedure if the Philippines is serious about ushering in digital transformation in the public sector.
Meanwhile, New Zealand also challenged its payment industry stakeholders to accelerate technological advancement as OpenGov recently reported. The appeal was issued as part of the government’s effort to keep the country on the cutting edge of the money and payments landscape.
Technological advancement is required to improve New Zealand’s electronic scalability, instant, peer-to-peer payments and real-time retail payment systems. She also advocated for accelerating the country’s fintech development. She stated that the country could improve its digital competitiveness by cultivating homegrown fintech firms.
New Zealand has recognised the significance of increasing domestic competition and reducing inefficiencies in the payment space and the broader financial system. However, lingering reliance on legacy systems, a failure to understand regulatory impetus and focus, and limitations in regulatory cohesion and support for innovation are impeding real progress.
