Philippines may surpass growth forecasts: World Bank
The Philippines may surpass growth forecasts of 6.4 percent this year and 6.2 percent in 2017, the World Bank said in an update on Monday.
“Many reforms are being unveiled, specifically on tax policy and administration, the tracking of government spending, security of land tenure, ease of doing business, and restrictions on foreign participation,” said World Bank lead economist Birgit Hansl in a statement.
“But as policy details are still being discussed, some businesses might remain cautious. The completion of the new Philippine Development Plan this year will provide more clarity on the government’s development priorities and further improve the country’s growth prospects,” she said.
In a separate statement, the finance department said its comprehensive tax reform plan to raise an extra P1 trillion yearly for public investments is geared to free some 10 million Filipinos from poverty in six years’ time.
“In six years, we can become a high middle-income country and reduce 10 million people out of poverty,” Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III has stressed in separate sectoral dialogues to win broad public support behind the department’s tax reform program.
In the finance department statement, Dominguez said the Duterte administration wants public investments to almost double to P2.29 trillion each year, of which P951 billion will go to infrastructure (or an increase of P330 billion), P908 billion to education (P454 billion increase), P256 billion to health (P128 billion increase) P120 billion to social protection (P60 billion increase), and P55 billion to training, R&D and other programs (P45 billion increase). DMS
