The Department of Finance (DOF)’s privatization and corporate affairs group said Monday it collected P99.98 billion in dividends from government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs) in 2023, up by 46 percent from P68.34 billion in 2022.
“The increased dividend collection is a result of fiscal discipline that the DOF continues to instill in GOCCs. These dividends will help manage our deficit and will be used to support the country’s development needs,” Finance Secretary and Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG) member Benjamin Diokno said.
“Rest assured, the DOF will remain steadfast in its commitment to strictly monitor the performance of our GOCCs, ensuring that they are well-run and are operating within the bounds of national development policies and programs,” he said.
Republic Act (RA) No. 7656 or the Dividends Law of 1994 mandates all GOCCs to declare and remit at least 50 percent of their annual net earnings to the national government. A total of 51 GOCCs remitted dividends to the National Treasury as of Dec. 31, 2023.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) emerged as the top dividend contributor in 2023 with P55.61 billion.
The other top dividend contributors were the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) with P14.05 billion, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) with P6.96 billion, Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) with P4.44 billion, Power Sector Assets & Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) with P3.15 billion and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) with P2.67 billion.
Other top dividend contributors were Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) with P1.68 billion, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) with P1.52 billion, National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) with P1.48 billion, Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) with P1.35 billion and Clark Development Corp. with P1.21 billion.
The dividends are a major source of non-tax revenues to fund the accelerated implementation of programs on infrastructure and various social and economic programs of the government.