The government expects dividends from government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs) to climb to P117 billion by the end of 2025, boosting non-tax revenues to fund priority programs without burdening taxpayers, the Department of Finance (DoF) said on Tuesday.

At the 2025 GOCCs’ Day celebration, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto underscored the crucial role of state firms in supporting fiscal sustainability, noting that their remittances have already reached P109 billion as of 12 September.

People-owned, not just state-owned

The DoF chief stressed that GOCCs are “people-owned,” not just state-owned, and that their financial and public service performance must always put Filipinos at the center.

Under Republic Act 7656, GOCCs are mandated to remit at least 50 percent of their prior year’s net earnings to the National Government. To maximize non-tax revenues, the DoF has asked them to raise this share to 75 percent, a target that several state firms have already exceeded.

“When we set a higher bar for dividend remittances, you have not only responded, but many of you have even exceeded expectations. And you did so not merely because the law required you to, but because you remain true to the very reason you exist: to serve the Filipino people,” Recto said.

Top contributors

The top contributors to this year’s dividend pool include the Land Bank of the Philippines (P33.5 billion), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (P18.9 billion), Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (P12.7 billion), Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (P10.1 billion), and Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (P9 billion).

Other major remitters were the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (P5.3 billion), Philippine Ports Authority (P5.2 billion), Manila International Airport Authority (P3.3 billion), Clark Development Corporation (P2.5 billion), and Philippine National Oil Company (P2.4 billion).

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who led the awarding ceremony alongside Recto, said the government is committed to ensuring that every peso remitted by GOCCs will be spent with transparency and accountability.

Public trust most valuable currency

“For the rest of the bureaucracy, our job is to ensure that the dividends of our GOCCs will redound to better services. We need to spend these funds with utmost transparency and accountability. Public trust is our most valuable currency,” the President said.

The DoF, through its Corporate Sector and Strategic Infrastructure Group, continues to monitor GOCCs’ financial performance to strengthen fiscal discipline and ensure proper remittances to the state.

Recto also called on GOCCs to uphold integrity, avoid corruption, and join efforts such as the GOCC Service Caravan, which was launched in July to bring services closer to Filipinos nationwide.

“So on this GOCC Day, let us renew our covenant: to serve the Filipino people with excellence, to be not only earners of revenue but enablers of growth, guardians of public trust, and builders of a more prosperous Philippines,” he said.