The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday revised its growth forecast for the Philippines in 2022 from 6.5 percent in September to 7.4 percent in December.

But growth is expected to slow down in 2023 from 6.3 percent to 6 percent, according to the ADB Outlook Supplement.

In a press briefing, ADB Philippines country director Kelly Bird said inflation will remain "elevated" until next year.

“The Philippine economy has shown strong underlying growth momentum and resilience in 2022 and this is expected to continue in 2023, with GDP (gross domestic product) growth converging towards its longer-term growth rate of about 6 percent,” Bird said.

“There are downside risks to growth in 2023, including inflation stickiness, further increases in interest rates, and a sharper than expected slowdown in GDP growth in advanced countries,” he added.

According to Bird, the main drivers of the economy in 2022 are rising employment, increasing mobility, tourism, public infrastructure programs, and the expansion in private investments and the manufacturing sector.

Under its lending program for 2023 to 2025, ADB will be lending the Philippines $4.3 annually.

It will be used to fund several infrastructure and agricultural projects including the Bataan Cavite Interlink Bridge, Laguna Lakeshore Expressway, Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 4 from Ortigas to Taytay, Davao Public Transport Modernization Project, Integrated Flood and Modernization Project Phase 1, Mindanao Irrigation Project, among others.

ADB previously lent the country $2.9 billion from 2019 to 2022 annually.

ADB is also funding some priority projects, including the Clark Railway Project and the South Commuter Railway Project, which are both under the North-South Commuter Railway project that is seeking to provide a transportation link between Metro Manila and Luzon provinces.

ADB is a regional development bank built in 1996 to promote social and economic growth in Asia.

It is owned by 68 members of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and non-regional developed countries. Jaspearl Tan/DMS