Lead The Philippines Toward Inclusive Economic Growth

In the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2022 report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Philippine economy is forecast to grow faster than expected in 2022 through a strong domestic demand brought by rising employment and a recovery in tourism coming from the recently lifted COVID-19 restrictions.

In line with this forecast, Asia Branding Consultancy, Inc. founder Wilfrido E. Arcilla urges government agencies to adopt and propagate the “Doctrine for Inclusive Economic Growth” to rectify the widening income disparity and eradicate poverty, hunger, and malnutrition.

This recommendation was based on several studies, analyses, and syntheses from over 20 years of the company’s work across Asia-Pacific. It bore witness to the Asian economic miracle wherein over one billion people from poverty were upgraded to middle-income status, evident in countries such as Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and now Vietnam, which has recently overtaken the Philippines in terms of total gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita GDP.

Arcilla explains that inclusive economic growth means buying from farmers, fisherfolks, laborers, and MSMEs to innovate and enhance their value and then sell their products to those with higher incomes. He added that exporting goods, not people, will have a higher chance of boosting the economy.

“If there are not enough middle to high-income people in the Philippines, then we must export overseas. This forces us to produce unique, innovative, superior-quality, premium-priced, world-class brands, delivering higher margins, to enable us to pay our employees higher wages, our managers higher salaries, and bonuses for all,” Arcilla said.

Arcilla explains that solely relying on OFW remittances will not help us achieve economic prosperity in the country since their contributions will reflect more overseas rather than locally.

“This is the “secret sauce” behind the Asian economic miracle. We will never achieve economic prosperity by sending millions of OFWs overseas. The true economic value of the OFWs is not in their monthly remittances. Truth be known, the real economic contribution of the OFW is reflected in the financial statements of their employers overseas; in the national income accounts of their host countries; and in the tax revenues they pay to foreign governments; not locally. This is not to mention the untold social costs of family separations among OFWs,” Arcilla said.

Source: Inquirer.net,  Asian Development Bank