By Amenah F. Pangandaman
BEYOND BUDGET
Assalamu alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
February has always been associated with love. While the most popular kind is romantic love, I believe there are other kinds of love. One is love for the environment. Because for me, loving oneself, another, and the country must also equate to loving the environment that sustains them.
Thus, when I was the secretary of the Department of Budget and Management, I advocated for climate resilience and sustainability, especially through public procurement.
I realized that the government has enormous power to influence outcomes simply through how it spends funds. Public procurement represents an average of 13 to 20 percent of our gross domestic product. In fact, for Fiscal Year 2025, our climate change expenditures grew by 152.7 percent from the previous year’s budget. This was the highest budget increase since 2015, accounting for 18.3 percent of the National Budget, well above the target of 9.0 percent under the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028. For me, the numbers do not reflect mere statistics. These are investments in safer homes and communities, more resilient infrastructure, and a more sustainable future for the nation.
A significant part of our country’s sustainability journey is Republic Act No. 12009, or the New Government Procurement Act (NGPA), the biggest anti-corruption measure in recent history, which incorporates green procurement.
For those who may not know, Green Public Procurement (GPP) is a process by which procuring entities (PEs) seek to procure goods, projects, and services with reduced environmental impact throughout their life cycle. Under the law, PEs must integrate and implement green practices, as well as environmentally relevant criteria or requirements, into the design and specifications of their procurement projects.
This is not only to achieve value for money and meet specific organizational needs, but also to benefit society and the economy while reducing adverse environmental impact. It is part of strategic procurement planning and in support of the Philippines’ commitment to accelerate climate action, strengthen disaster resilience, and achieve broader policy objectives on energy, water, and material efficiency; waste reduction; pollution and emission prevention; climate change mitigation; and circular economy, among others.
The foundations for this reform were laid years earlier through the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB), which adopted the Philippine GPP Roadmap and technical specifications for prioritized common use and non-common use supplies and equipment. This aims to mainstream GPP in government procurement, ensuring that environmental criteria are considered in government spending. In fact, the GPPB has noted, in its 2018-2022 Agency Procurement Compliance and Performance assessment reports, a gradual increase in the adoption of green specifications in the procurement of non-common use supplies and equipment. From 26 percent of PEs considering the environmental impact of their procurement projects, it increased to 90.91 percent in 2022.
This momentum was further fueled by the 2022 United Nations Environment Programme, which commended the Philippines for its highest rating for sustainable public procurement monitoring efforts. Building on these successes, the GPPB Board, which I then chaired, approved Resolution No. 19-2023, marking a pivotal moment with the introduction of mandatory green specifications for seven broad product categories of non-CSEs. This initiative is a gamechanger, as it paved the way for a more sustainable and flexible procurement system across the nation.
The NGPA further strengthened these reforms. Section 73 of the NGPA introduced GPP as one of its strategic procurement planning approaches. The NGPA also promotes greater weight in evaluating proposals with green specifications.
The GPP is designed to achieve environmental sustainability. Encouraging the purchase of goods and services that have a reduced environmental impact, including energy-efficient products made from recycled materials or that have a lower carbon footprint. By prioritizing these products, PEs can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote sustainable practices.
In addition, implementing GPP leads to longterm economic efficiency. Electronic or information communication technology energy-efficient products may have higher investment costs but result in lower operational and maintenance expenses over time.
Further, by adopting GPP, PEs can drive market demand for green products and services, stimulating innovation and development of more sustainable solutions, ultimately leading to a greener economy.
And GPP contributes to improving our country’s public health by reducing pollution and promoting the use of non-toxic materials. It also supports fair labor practices and local sourcing, which have positive social impacts.
Beyond budget, I believe that the GPP is essential in unlocking a sustainable and resilient future for our nation. It is a promise that should be kept.
As Citizen Mina, I hope that we can keep this promise to the Filipino people, especially future generations. But, as with everything grand, we can only achieve this through collective action. The government, civil society organizations, the private sector, and every Filipino must work hand-in-hand to secure this future. Hence, let’s work together towards a sustainable future by supporting Green Public Procurement.
(Amenah F. Pangandaman is the former Secretary of the Department of Budget and Management.)
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