Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko” Moreno Domagoso on Monday morning, March 16, announced the release of ₱1.76 billion in financial assistance, incentives, and revenue shares to pump-prime the local economy as global oil prices surge amid the ongoing armed conflict in the Middle East.
Domagoso said the funding package, which combines releases from the General Fund and Trust Fund, is intended to inject liquidity into the local economy by accelerating payouts to residents, students, public sector workers, and barangays across Manila.
“Starting today, we will release, to stimulate, to augment, to cushion our situation in the City of Manila, amounting to 1.7 billion pesos.
Ito po ay mga bagay na tutuusin natin sa darating na mga panahon, obligasyon na darating pa sa mga ibang linggo, but this time is the right time to release it early so that kahit papaano, hawak na ng tao, hawak na ng mga barangay,” the Mayor said in his speech at the flag-raising ceremony of the Manila City Hall.
“The total direct individuals is more or less about 330,000 of them, Manileño. That is amounting to about 15% of our population. And most of these are the heads of the family, that may have what you call a trickle-down effect,” the Mayor said.
Domagoso said about ₱594.76 million will come from the General Fund, while ₱1.165 billion will be released from the Trust Fund, bringing the total stimulus to ₱1,760,163,485.42.
“In a crisis, time is always of the essence. Time is very valuable. Actions, and timely actions, is a very important key element in addressing a crisis situation,” the Mayor said.
“If we can raise the buying capacity or purchasing power of our community, then the businesses will benefit from it, the jobs will be protected, and the economy will continue to evolve—what you call the velocity of money effect,” he added.
A large portion of the funds will go to the city’s Social Amelioration Program, which will distribute ₱427,849,000 in allowances covering January to March 2026 to 287,095 beneficiaries.
The program includes ₱310,157,500 for senior citizens, ₱25,658,500 for solo parents, ₱75,978,000 for adult persons with disabilities, and ₱16,055,000 for minor PWD beneficiaries.
The city will also release ₱51,129,000 in educational assistance for 17,043 students enrolled in Manila’s two public universities. Of the total amount, ₱27,522,000 will go to students of Universidad de Manila, while ₱23,607,000 will be distributed to students of Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.
Financial assistance will also be provided to national government agencies operating in the city, with ₱103,289,834.45 allocated for 16,425 beneficiaries under a city-funded assistance program.
This includes ₱68,053,214.45 in incentives for public school teachers under Schools Division Office–Manila, ₱32,169,120 for personnel of the Manila Police District, and ₱3,067,500 for members of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology.
Additional allocations totaling ₱12,494,376 will be released under various assistance programs, including ₱9,678,000 for senior high school students under the Schools Division of Manila and ₱2,816,376 for the Bureau of Fire Protection.
From the Trust Fund, the city government will also distribute ₱1,094,082,181.12 in barangay shares, including ₱25,411,000 from barangay clearance collections and ₱1,068,671,181.12 representing the Real Property Tax share of Manila’s 896 barangays.
Meanwhile, ₱71,319,093.85 in PhilHealth professional fee sharing will be released to 6,495 healthcare workers from Manila’s city-run hospitals and the Manila Health Department, including personnel from Ospital ng Sampaloc, Sta. Ana Hospital, Jose Abad Santos General Hospital, Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center, Ospital ng Maynila, and Ospital ng Tondo.
