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METRO MANILA SKYLINE

Andrea Taguines

ABS-CBN News

MANILA — The Philippines’ goal of becoming a high-income economy by 2040 may no longer be feasible, according to the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev).During the DEPDev mid-year press chat on Thursday, Secretary Arsenio Balisacan admitted that the COVID-19 pandemic set the Philippines back significantly.“In 2020, the economy contracted by almost 9 percent. That’s quite a big deal. We lost three (years’ worth) of growth momentum so the 2040 (target) is, at the current growth rate, is not likely going to be feasible anymore,” he said.Balisacan used to head the National Economic and Development Authority under the Aquino administration, which is when the Ambisyon Natin 2040 vision was crafted.But given the country’s stalled growth, Balisacan said his agency is now tasked to come up with a new long-term vision from 2025 to 2050.<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2025/5/8/philippine-gdp-grows-5-4-percent-in-first-quarter-of-2025-1005" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Philippine GDP grows 5.4 percent in first quarter of 2025</a></div>“The context then was that the economy was growing at 6.3 percent for almost 5 to 6 years. Coming to the present, if you look at the growth rate now for the last 15 years, we are still close to that 6 percent. So we’re still there,” he said.Asked when this feat could be achieved instead, Balisacan believes this could be delayed by about a decade or by 2050.“But if we can grow faster, while making it more inclusive, mid-2040s perhaps. But we need to grow faster. I’m not, you know, happy with 6 percent. Because with 6 percent, we’ll be overtaken by (those) ready to grow faster,” he said.While the Philippine economy is projected to expand by 6 to 7 percent for 2026 to 2028, Balisacan cited other Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam, which is aiming for double-digit growth, and Thailand, which he said is looking to grow 8 percent and above to become a high-income country as fast as possible.“That is the kind of aspiration that we must have not only for our administration but for the succeeding administration, he said.“And to grow faster, we need to solve the constraints that we face— structural, technical, institutional, all that stuff. Those are outlined in the PDP Mid-term Update.&quot;&quot;We focus on resolving the issues there so that when the next administration comes, they’ll have a better foundation to sustain the growth that the last few years have achieved,” added Balisacan.

The Philippines’ goal to reach high-income status by 2040 may no longer be feasible, according to the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development.

The Philippines’ goal to reach high-income status by 2040 may no longer be feasible, according to the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development.

PH growth rate not enough to reach high-income status by 2040: DEPDev chief Balisacan

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PH growth rate not enough to reach high-income status by 2040: DEPDev chief Balisacan

Andrea Taguines,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jul 31, 2025 06:49 PM PHT

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