PH starts laying groundwork for inclusive growth by 2040

The Duterte administration is laying down the groundwork for achieving high-income status and inclusive growth by 2040, the Department of Finance said Tuesday.

In his welcome remarks at the Philippine Development Forum (PDF) in Davao City, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III emphasized the urgency of the task on hand.

"By 2040, our demographic sweet spot will have passed. We will become an aging population unable to maintain high inclusive growth rates. With the dramatic change in our demographics, the probability is high that the Philippines will never become a rich economy with a negligible poverty rate," he said.

"This will be a calamity inflicted by failure to govern well,” Dominguez added.

The government plans to achieve such ambitious goals by taking the initial steps, convening business leaders and civil society groups to draft an action plan in pursuit of yearly economic growth at 7 percent, employment opportunities, and raising 1.5 million Filipinos from poverty.

“The overarching goal of this administration’s reform program is the reduction of poverty by about 8 percent over the medium-term. Each year, we aspire to liberate 1.5 million Filipinos from misery. The reduction of poverty will be made possible by maintaining an annual gross domestic product growth rate of at least 7 percent, Dominguez noted.

"The high growth rate will not be enough if it is not inclusive. We have seen in the past few years that our economy, while posting healthy growth, made the rich richer and the poor poorer,” he said.

Forum participants can speak their minds as part of the process, without taking advantage of the venue as a place to rant and deliver privilege speeches, the Cabinet official noted.

“Let me assure all of you that free speech is guaranteed in this forum. As a house rule, we will discourage privilege speeches and long rants. This will help ensure that speaking time will be more equitably distributed. We might refer to this as 'inclusive deliberation' akin to the 'growth' we seek to achieve for ourselves,” Dominguez added.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte last month signed an executive order adopting the bold 25-year vision of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) under the AmBisyon Natin 2040 to eliminate poverty and hunger.

The government sought the help of business leaders and civil society groups to help forge an action plan on how best to implement the 10-point socioeconomic agenda as a way of fostering inclusive growth and reducing poverty.

The two-day forum will be highlighted by breakout sessions organized under the following subjects:

• Macroeconomic and fiscal policies, which include the proposed tax reform program of the DOF

• Peace and development initiatives in Mindanao

• Infrastructure and competitiveness, which include the development of science and technology, building an efficient transport network and improving the ease of doing business

• Rural development, which include land administration and management and food security

• Development of human capital, which include social protection programs for the poorest of the poor and the implementation of the reproductive health law

"At the close of this meeting, we hope to see consensus points that will guide policymaking and the starting point of concerted action on behalf of our people,” Dominguez said.

NEDA Deputy Director Rosemarie G. Edillon earlier said the lofty targets of inclusive growth and poverty reduction may be achieve even before 2040 if the issues are effectively addressed along the way. — Jon Viktor Cabuenas/VDS, GMA News