Benjamin Diokno Former Philippine Secretary of Budget and Management Date of Birth: 31.03.1948 Country: Philippines

Biography of Benjamin Diokno

Benjamin Diokno is a former Filipino Minister of Budget and Management under President Joseph Estrada's administration. He served in this position from July 1998 until the overthrow of Estrada in January 2001. Prior to this, Diokno also worked as the Deputy Minister of Budget Operations in the Department of Budget and Management from 1986 to 1991, during President Corazon Aquino's administration.

During Aquino's presidency, Diokno provided technical assistance in implementing several major reforms, such as the 1986 tax program reform that simplified the profit tax and introduced value-added tax (VAT), as well as the Local Government Code developed and passed in 1991.

During President Estrada's tenure, Diokno initiated several reforms aimed at transparency and enhancing the efficiency of public services. One of his major reforms was the implementation of the "What You See Is What You Get" (WYSWIG) policy, which greatly streamlined the work of various government agencies' leaders, allowing them to immediately plan projects and enter into contracts without having to wait for official authorization from higher authorities.

Diokno then began reforming the government procurement system by utilizing enhanced information and communication technologies, which improved the system's speed. He received technical assistance from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) to develop an electronic procurement system based on the Canadian model. By August 1999, the Department of Budget and Management had adopted two documents necessary to initiate procurement reforms.

In early 2000, Diokno and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) successfully completed a technical assistance program for budget reform, which now includes procurement reform. Among other reforms he implemented were streamlining the process of paying creditors' debts and pensions or benefits upon retirement or discharge from the military.

The growing budget deficit became a significant concern for Diokno and one of the government's most important problems. Currently, Benjamin Diokno is a professor at the University of the Philippines School of Economics and a columnist for "Business World."