Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said Wednesday that they are “confident” that the country can reach its economic growth target of six to seven percent this year, reaching eight percent by 2028.

“With a promising outlook on the horizon, we are confident that we will achieve the lower end of our growth target of 6.0 to 7.0 percent for this year, and accelerate at 6.5 to 8.0 percent from 2024 to 2028,” Diokno said at the 2023 Pilipinas Conference at the Peninsula Manila Hotel in Makati.He cited other forecasts from other sources including the World Bank which sees the Philippines growing at 5.4 percent this year and the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office projecting that the country will grow by 5.9 percent this year and 6.5 percent in 2024.“Despite external risks and domestic challenges, the Philippines remains to be one of the brightest spots in the region,” Diokno said.Diokno said the Philippines’ debt-to-GDP ratio decreased to 60.2 percent from the previous quarter’s 61 percent and 63.6 in 2022.“We believe that our end-of-year debt ratio will fall below the 2023 Medium-Term Fiscal Framework target of 61.4 percent,” he said.Diokno said the Department of Finance (DOF) is also pushing for key measures including the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform which seeks to “promote the development of a just, equitable, and modern real property valuation system” and the Passive Income and Financial Intermediaries Taxation which seeks to “boost our capital market development efforts by simplifying and rationalizing the tax regime for passive income, financial services, and financial transactions”.Other bills they are pushing for are the imposition of value-added tax on digital goods and services, corrective tax measures on sweetened beverages and junk food, excise tax on single-use plastics, proposed reform on motor vehicle road users tax, and rationalizing the country’s mining fiscal regime.“The economic team remains resolute in its pursuit of macroeconomic stability and fiscal sustainability through the passage of key reforms identified in the country’s first-ever Medium-Term Fiscal Framework,” he said.“Together, these measures aim to improve tax administration, enhance the fairness and efficiency of our tax system, and promote environmental sustainability to address climate change,” he added.Diokno expressed optimism that the country was on its way to recovery and progress.“With a brightening outlook on the horizon and a strong array of revenue-enhancing reforms, the Philippine economy remains firmly on the path to recovery and progress,” he said. Jaspearl Tan/DMS