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Amidst the pandemic, the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) joins the ranks of top state-run firms that have remitted billions of pesos to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) during the fiscal year 2020.

The PRA remitted a total of P4.402 billion in dividends covering 2019 net income and 2020 advance dividends in response to the Bayanihan to Heal as One (RA 11469) and the Bayanihan to Recover as One (RA 11494) Laws.

While Republic Act 7656 or the Dividends Law requires government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to remit to BTr at least 50% of their net income as dividends, PRA far exceeded the base minimum contribution in dividend remittance, placing 9th in the list of top state-run corporations that emerged as largest contributors to the national government.

In an article published on the website of the Department of Finance (DOF), among 63 GOCCs that have remitted to the BTr, the top 10 GOCCs that remitted 87% of the total dividends during the fiscal year 2020 are as follows:

  1. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) – P40.53 billion
  2. Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) – P17.98 billion
  3. Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) – P17 billion
  4. Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) – P12 billion
  5. Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) – P6 billion
  6. Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) – P6 billion
  7. Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) – P5.05 billion
  8. Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) – P5 billion
  9. Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) – P4.4 billion
  10. National Power Corporation (Napocor) – P4 billion

In another DOF article, Finance Undersecretary Antonette Tionko said that “these GOCC dividends were primarily utilized for the Social Amelioration Program (SAP), which provided emergency assistance to low-income families to help tide them over during the strict lockdowns imposed earlier last year to curb the spread of COVID-19.”

For fiscal year 2020, PRA also filed P1.99 billion in taxes with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). Hence, PRA contributed a total of P6.39 billion to the national coffers to subsidize and fund cash aid programs for vulnerable sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

More than ever, PRA has remained true and proactive to its mandates and corporate values in supporting the government and responding to the needs of the Filipino people.