Duterte admin ready to assist next presidency in four economic concerns — Dominguez

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III on Thursday said the Duterte administration is ready to assist the next presidency during the transition period in 2022 in addressing four primary concerns that will affect the country’s economic stability.

The four economic concerns are prudent debt management in relation to growing the economy above 6% per year; inflation caused by global shortages; pandemic-induced inequalities; and climate change, Dominguez said in a statement.

The Finance chief said that after going through a difficult episode amid the pandemic, the Philippines is poised for a strong recovery towards a more inclusive economy owing to the strength of its institutions and the firm foundations laid by the Duterte administration over the last five years.

He said that on top of ensuring fiscal prudence, the Duterte administration also introduced numerous policy reforms such as the reduction of red tape; the digital transformation of public agencies; implementation of a National ID system; infrastructure modernization; and a rationalized corporate income tax (CIT) and fiscal incentives policy through the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law.

The remaining period of President Duterte’s term will be focused on rapidly modernizing governance; accelerating the rollout of the “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program; and continuing with the market-friendly reforms attractive to investments, Dominguez said.

“The Duterte administration will also ensure that the next presidency will be ably assisted during the transition period in addressing four key issues that will impact the Philippines’ economic stability," the Finance chief said.

"These include ways on how to prudently manage the debt we have accumulated and grow our gross domestic product (GDP) at a rate higher than 6% per annum as we have done. We need to deal with the issue of inflation brought about by shortages around the world,” he said.

“We need to manage the inequalities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic—both within the country and among countries. And finally, we need to address climate change without stretching the fiscal space of the country,” he added. — RSJ, GMA News