Dennis Gasgonia

Article (news)

Magalong

Carlos Trazo

ABS-CBN News

The national government, in partnership with the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), the European Union, and UNICEF, has launched a new budget tagging tool to help local government units (LGUs) track and prioritize spending for children’s welfare.The initiative, known as Child Budget and Expenditure Tagging and Training (CBETT), aims to institutionalize child-responsive budgeting across LGUs, ensuring that programs on nutrition, education, protection, and mental health are adequately funded and monitored. By 2027, the tool is set to cover all 1,600 municipalities nationwide, generating data that will guide evidence-based planning, budgeting, and program prioritization for children. During its launch attended by local officials, Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong underscored the urgency of aligning budgets with the actual needs of children, citing persistent gaps in poverty reduction and rising cases of school violence.“How do we address child poverty? Up and down yung trend… if you look at the data, 8 regions are in regression, 7 only in progression from 2018 to 2023,” Magalong said.He pointed out that regions with large infrastructure budgets often still report high poverty incidence, suggesting a disconnect in spending priorities.“Lugar na malalaki ang pondo sa infrastructure project, sila pa yung matataas yung poverty incident… there’s some sort of a gap… not in sync,” he added.Magalong also raised concerns about the lack of transparency in how much of the LGU budget is actually allocated to children’s concerns, such as nutrition and mental health.“How much of the budget really goes to the concerns of the children?” he asked. “Tinitignan ko nga kanina how much funds were being spent for child poverty... makikita mo na… is it equitable? Wala akong nakikita ng ganun eh.”He criticized the uneven distribution of national funds, saying powerful political figures often secure larger allocations.“Yung mga lugar na very powerful yung mga politicians, sila yung nakakakuha ng malaking pondo… especially yung mga members ng Kongreso, sila yung nakakakuha ng pondo… Eh kami sa Cordillera… wala naman kaming senator… one time lang kami nagkaroon ng senator, kaya laging napapabayaan ang Cordillera… pati sa budget, lagi kami nahuhuli sa lahat.”Magalong also highlighted the rise in bullying incidents in schools, particularly in Baguio City National High School, where students were reportedly harassed on their way home.“Admittedly, tumataas talaga yung bullying sa school and it affects the mental health ng mga bata… responsibilidad ito ng local government, wag na natin ipasa to sa iba… despite na maraming interventions, tumataas pa rin,” he said.To address the issue, Magalong said the city initially deployed police officers but acknowledged that enforcement alone is not sustainable.“Kailangan talaga ay education… kakausapin mo yung PTA, kakausapin mo yung Department of Education para talaga maging holistic yung approach… para magkaroon ng viable or ng sustainable na solution,” he said. “One is identification talaga ng mga nangbubully… find out as to why nagbubully sila… and probably kailangan ng intervention din on the part of social welfare… paano natin i-eeducate ‘tong mga bata? How to change their mindsets and at the same time change their behavior and their attitude.”Magalong expressed hope that the CBETT initiative would lead to a more strategic and synchronized approach to addressing child poverty and violence.“Sana with this convention we’ll be able to come up with a more synchronized and strategic approach to address child poverty and violence,” he said.

The government has launched a new budget tagging tool to help LGUs track and prioritize spending for children’s welfare.

The government has launched a new budget tagging tool to help LGUs track and prioritize spending for children’s welfare.

Gov’t launches budget tool to boost LGU support for child welfare

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Gov’t launches budget tool to boost LGU support for child welfare

Carlos Trazo,

ABS-CBN News

Published Aug 14, 2025 09:49 PM PHT

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CBETT

Mayor Benjamin Magalong

DBM

Child Budget Expenditure Tagging and Training

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