By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
In a briefing on Monday, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro announced the appointment of Kim Robert de Leon as the new Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary.
Upon taking his oath of office on Tuesday, de Leon is set to become the youngest member of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. ‘s Cabinet, taking over the agency’s reins from Former Acting Budget Secretary Rolando Toledo.
The latter is reappointed as the head of the Board of Trustees representing the leading organizations or associations of government employees and retirees under the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).
Recognized for his work in fiscal management, organizational reform, and digital transformation, de Leon is an alumnus of the University of the Philippines – National College of Public Administration and Governance (UP-NCPAG), who graduated magna cum laude and valedictorian from the Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration Program in 2014.
Two years later, he also topped the 2016 Environmental Planning Licensure Examination administered by the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC).
De Leon also holds masters degrees in urban and regional planning, and public safety administration with academic honors, as well as three awards from the Boy Scouts of the Philippines—Bronze in 2017, Silver in 2019, and Gold in 2021.
He also obtained a certificate in Business Process Management from the Queensland University of Technology in 2021 under the Australia Awards Scholarship Program.
As the new Budget Secretary, de Leon is expected to take the helm of the primary agency in charge of dispensing the 2026 national budget and spending it accordingly, in line with various priorities and initiatives set forth by the administration.
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