Where is foreign aid for 'Yolanda' going?

MANILA - Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario on Thursday clarified that only 20% of all foreign aid pledges for the "Yolanda" relief effort is in cash and does not go directly to the government. Speaking to ANC's Headstart, del Rosario said foreign assistance being received by the Philippines is either in cash or in kind. "When they say to us: 'We want to help, we are sending this over' what do we do? If there is medical assistance, we send it to [the Department of Health]. If it is food, it goes to [Department of Social Welfare and Development]. If it is cash, this is the rub: We don't see the cash because most of this goes to institutions like the Red Cross and the UN agencies and it goes to NGOs. We do not see this," he said. Asked if the cash donations go to the National Treasury, he said: "No...It doesn't go to the government. Not at all." Foreign aid pledges have reached P18,186,240,520.80, according to the government's Foreign Aid Transparency Hub (FAiTH). Del Rosario said the Philippine government usually asks the foreign embassies to clarify what exactly has been received in order to come up with a valuation of the donations. He also noted it makes more sense to donate directly to NGOs such as the Red Cross since these are tax deductible. "If you are donating from the US, you can get your tax deductibility by going to the UN or Red Cross or through an NGO, which you cannot do if you donate to the Philippine government. The tax deductibility - there is no benefit to you," he said.