The Senate’s version of the 2025 General Appropriations Bill (GAB) has allocated an additional ₱5 billion to the Office of the President’s budget to prepare for the Philippines’ hosting of the 2026 ASEAN Summit, Senator Grace Poe announced.
During a press briefing, Poe shared that Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin met with senators to discuss the urgent preparations required for the high-profile event.
“Some of the participating countries were a little bit hesitant about having the ASEAN event [in the country that was supposed to be the host]. So they requested na Pilipinas. So napakakonti ng ating time to prepare,” Poe explained.
She emphasized the scale of preparations needed:
“We actually met with Executive Secretary Bersamin at sinabi niya na actually ‘yung mga ASEAN na ‘yan, they have to prepare a venue for about 400 meetings… not to mention, security… housing, all of these, not just for the main delegates, but even for the staff. So, 2026 ‘yun… we have to prepare by next year. Hindi pwedeng ora-orada ‘yun.”
The additional funding will help the government meet the logistical and security demands of hosting the summit, which involves hundreds of meetings and accommodations for leaders and their staff.
The Senate approved the proposed 2025 budget for the Office of the President in the plenary without raising objections.