National Commission on Muslim Filipinos

.title[
# National Commission on Muslim Filipinos
]
.subtitle[
## A comprehensive look at the budget, 2018-2026
]
.date[
### July 2026
]

---

# Section 1 of 3: The Scale of the Budget

### Scale, growth, and Congress's hand

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## Executive summary

- **NCMF's enacted budget has more than doubled** -- from PHP 535M (2018 GAA) to a proposed PHP 1,314M (2026): about +145%, or ~12% a year, faster than most small agencies.
- **But the scale remains modest against the population it serves.** Spread across the roughly **7.0 million Muslim Filipinos** counted in the 2020 census, the 2026 budget is about **PHP 188 per person per year** -- and NCMF itself estimates the community is considerably larger.
- **One organizational move, a stable structure.** NCMF (the former Office on Muslim Affairs) shifted from the **Other Executive Offices to the DILG around 2019** and has stayed there -- *without* re-cutting its five-program structure.
- **Half the budget is a single line.** Preservation of **Muslim cultural centers, heritage, holidays and festivities** has been **46-60% of the agency every year**, reaching PHP 603M in 2026.
- **Congress reliably tops up NCMF.** Enacted budgets matched or beat the proposal in eight of nine years; the **+PHP 148M (+13%) add for FY 2026** is the largest in the period.
- **A delivery-oriented mix.** Operations are **75% of the 2026 budget**; the personnel share fell from 84% (2018) to 56% (2026) as MOOE expanded.
- **Execution is strong.** Obligation rates run **86-99%**, and the agency disburses nearly everything it obligates -- except **2019 (68% cash utilization)**, the transition year.

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## A few notes on the data

- **Period:** FY 2018 through FY 2026 for the proposed (NEP) and enacted (GAA) budget. Execution data (Allotments, Obligations, Disbursements) covers FY 2011-2025.
- **Two bases, not comparable.** NEP/GAA figures are **current-year new appropriations only**. The execution figures are DBM's **published agency aggregates, which lump together all available funds** -- new, automatic, and continuing appropriations. Do not read them one-to-one.
- **No P/A/P-level execution.** Usable FAR No. 1 records were unavailable for NCMF, so absorption is shown only at the **agency level**, not by program.
- **One reorganization.** NCMF's mother agency changed once (**OEOs -> DILG**, ~2019). Unlike some peers, its **P/A/P structure stayed stable** throughout -- so program lines are comparable across all years.
- **Expense classes:** PS (Personnel Services), MOOE (Maintenance & Other Operating Expenses), CO (Capital Outlays). NCMF carries no Financial Expenses.
- **Population figures.** Per-person comparisons use the **2020 Census of Population and Housing**, which recorded **6,981,710 Filipinos (6.4%) reporting Islam**. NCMF has estimated the share at **10-11%**, citing under-registration and incomplete coverage of Muslim communities in official surveys -- so per-person amounts here should be read as an **upper bound**.
- **Units:** all figures in **PHP millions** unless noted.

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## One move to DILG -- but a stable program structure

**This makes NCMF's trends easier to read than agencies that churn their structure** -- the same program lines run cleanly from 2018 to 2026.

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## Big picture: the budget keeps growing

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## Big picture: a few takeaways

- **Steady ~12% annual growth, accelerating recently:** the budget jumped +PHP 265M in FY 2025 and a further +PHP 181M in FY 2026.
- **The proposal and the enacted budget rarely diverge much** -- NCMF's appropriations are largely Executive-led, with Congress fine-tuning at the margin.
- **FY 2026 (PHP 1,314M) is the largest enacted budget in the series**, and the first year MOOE approaches the personnel bill.

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## Where Congress adjusts the budget

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## Which P/A/Ps does Congress augment?

.small[
Cumulative across FY 2018-2026. Congress's additions reinforce NCMF's frontline programs -- **the cultural-heritage line, Madrasah/Shari'ah education, and Hajj operations** -- while the small trims fall on planning and policy functions. Congress pushes in the same direction as the Executive, only more so.
]

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# Section 2 of 3: Where the Money Goes

### Programs, expense classes, and the dominant line

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## Composition by PREXC program

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## Composition by expense class

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## The largest P/A/Ps (FY 2026 GAA)

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## Half the agency: the cultural-heritage line

.small[
- The line grew from **PHP 299M (2018) to PHP 603M (2026)** -- a 102% rise -- and held a **46-60% share** throughout.
- Because so much rides on one P/A/P, **the budget documents do not show which centers, regions or activities it funds** -- so communities cannot easily tell whether the money is reaching them.
- Together with Hajj operations (PHP 104M) and Madrasah/Shari'ah education (PHP 142M), **cultural, religious and educational services are the core of NCMF's budget** -- the functions the agency exists to deliver.
]

---

# Section 3 of 3: Does NCMF Spend What It Receives?

### Budget execution, FY 2011-2025 (agency aggregate, all funds)

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## Execution over time

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## Absorptive capacity

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## Execution at a glance

<table class="table table-condensed table-striped" style="font-size: 14px; color: black; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
 <thead>
  <tr>
   <th style="text-align:left;"> Year </th>
   <th style="text-align:right;"> Allotments </th>
   <th style="text-align:right;"> Obligations </th>
   <th style="text-align:right;"> Disbursements </th>
   <th style="text-align:right;"> O/A </th>
   <th style="text-align:right;"> D/O </th>
   <th style="text-align:right;"> D/A </th>
  </tr>
 </thead>
<tbody>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2016 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 577 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 539 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 504 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 93.4% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 93.5% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 87.4% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2017 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 675 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 665 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 638 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 98.4% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 95.9% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 94.4% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2018 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 657 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 636 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 612 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 96.8% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 96.3% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 93.2% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2019 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 703 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 687 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 479 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 97.7% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 69.6% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 68.1% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2020 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 709 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 689 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 675 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 97.1% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 98.1% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 95.2% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2021 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 876 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 764 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 728 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 87.3% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 95.3% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 83.2% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2022 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 900 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 891 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 891 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 99.1% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 99.9% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 99.0% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2023 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 929 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 908 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 852 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 97.7% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 93.8% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 91.6% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2024 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 1,023 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 973 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 973 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 95.2% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 100.0% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 95.2% </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td style="text-align:left;"> 2025 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 1,270 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 1,233 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 1,232 </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 97.1% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 99.9% </td>
   <td style="text-align:right;"> 96.9% </td>
  </tr>
</tbody>
</table>

.small[
PHP millions, all-funds basis. **O/A** = obligations to allotment; **D/O** = disbursements to obligations; **D/A** = disbursements to allotment. NCMF obligates almost everything released to it; the one clear break is **2019**, when disbursements lagged obligations badly (D/O 70%) as the agency moved to DILG.
]

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## For discussion

- **1. Is the envelope big enough?** NCMF's FY 2026 budget works out to roughly **PHP 188 per Muslim Filipino per year** -- about fifty centavos a day -- and closer to **PHP 110** if the community is as large as NCMF itself estimates. Does that match the scale of the mandate?

- **2. Are Hajj services meeting what pilgrims actually need?** Hajj operations receive PHP 104M in 2026. Is that enough for accreditation and oversight of organizers, welfare and medical support, and protection against illegal recruitment -- and what do pilgrims themselves experience?

- **3. Is Madrasah education keeping up?** Institutional support for Madrasah education, Shari'ah and Qur'an programs is PHP 142M. Does that meet the demand for quality Islamic and Arabic-language education among Muslim Filipino learners?

- **4. Are the livelihood programs scaled to need?** Endowment, Muslim MSEs and Halal together are about **5% of the budget (~PHP 62M)**. Halal certification in particular is a growing economic opportunity. Should these grow -- and should they grow *alongside* cultural and religious services rather than out of them?

- **5. Does the spending reach every community?** Half the budget sits in one undifferentiated line. Can communities see which centers, regions and activities it funds -- including those far from the traditional centers, and Muslim Filipinos living outside Mindanao?

- **6. What is missing entirely?** Which needs of Muslim Filipino communities does this budget simply not address?

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# Thank you

### National Commission on Muslim Filipinos
#### A comprehensive look at the budget, 2018-2026

.footnote[Underlying data: DBM NEP & GAA documents (current-year new appropriations, P/A/P level), FY 2018-2026; DBM-published execution aggregates (all available funds, agency level), FY 2011-2025. No FAR No. 1 (P/A/P-level execution) was available for NCMF.]