FINANCING LOCAL DEVELOPMENT: BUDGET PRIORITIZATION AS BASIS OF PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF BANGA, SOUTH COTABATO

Realities on public financing for local development raise skepticism about whether local fiscal decentralization can lead to better development outcomes and raise the standard of living of the people. The primary focus of this research study was to determine the processes and features of development financing of the Local Government Unit of Municipality of Banga through the prioritization of the annual budgets in 2017-2019. Using the qualitative descriptive design in research, the researchers gathered archival documents and narratives from key-informant interviews with the heads of local government offices in the Municipality during the data collection process.

The research findings indicate that the local development agenda of the LGU is embodied in the Executive-Legislative Agenda and centered on the Enhanced Tri-Fold Agenda of the Palencia Administration. Moreover, local development financing rested on the administrative capacity and moderate financial capacity of the LGU and carried on its expenditure program, which is inclined on general administration and public infrastructure investments, while the investment for economic and social services is declining. The landmark development programs of the Municipality consist of free education, farm-to- market roads, and concreting of Municipal and barangay roads in exchange for the neglected areas of local development that are unidentified because of the lack of mechanisms to generate feedback from the beneficiaries in the grassroots.