PHILIPPINE CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

MASTER IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

PROGRAM-PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND

MANAGEMENT

PROF. EDILBERTO A. LAGUNDA. Ph.D.

Prepared by:
David J. Mangandi

Programs/Projects for Philippine Socio-Economic Development

The socio-economic development of the Philippines is a multifaceted challenge that
requires strategic planning, comprehensive policies, and collaborative efforts across
various sectors. In pursuit of a more inclusive and resilient nation, a range of programs
and projects have been envisioned to uplift communities, empower individuals, and
foster economic growth.
This will delve into a selection of key initiatives designed to propel socio-economic
development in the Philippines. Considerations for healthcare access, microfinance and
entrepreneurship, infrastructure development, renewable energy, disaster resilience,
tourism, water and sanitation, information and communication technology (ICT), social
housing, and environmental conservation will be explored. These initiatives collectively
embody a vision for a thriving and sustainable Philippines, where economic progress is
coupled with social inclusivity and environmental stewardship.

The Philippine Development Plan

The Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028 (hereinafter, PDP or the Plan) serves as
the country’s overall blueprint in development planning for the next six years. It reflects
the government’s policies, strategies, programs, and legislative priorities in support of
and consistent with President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s Socioeconomic Agenda. The
Plan is geared toward the attainment of the country’s long-term vision, the AmBisyon
Natin 2040, where all Filipinos are envisioned to enjoy strongly rooted, comfortable, and
secure lives. The development plan is formulated by the National Economic and
Development Authority (NEDA), which is the country's socioeconomic planning and
policy coordinating body.

Overview of the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028

The PDP aims to reinvigorate job creation and accelerate poverty reduction by steering
the Philippine economy back to its high-growth trajectory and effect economic and
social transformation for a prosperous, inclusive, and resilient society. This growth must
be inclusive, building an environment that provides equal opportunities to all Filipinos,
and equipping them with skills to participate fully in an innovative and globally
competitive economy.
The PDP 2023–2028 is based on President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s 8-point
socioeconomic agenda that tackle immediate, on-the-ground concerns—high inflation,
scarring due to COVID-19 and the tight fiscal space; address long-standing, critical
constraints to generating more jobs, quality jobs, and green jobs over the medium; and
provide the necessary enabling environment— level playing field, and peace and
security.

What are the key strategies and approaches of the Plan?

The Plan fully considers the lessons learned from the pandemic and the country’s
recent economic history.
First, maintaining robust macroeconomic fundamentals, which foster consumer and
investor confidence, is key to achieving rapid economic recovery and preventing
socioeconomic scarring. The lockdowns brought about by the Covid 19 pandemic
increased the Government expenditures due to direct cash transfers and COVID-19
response-related costs such as: procurement of COVID-19 test kits and personal
protective equipment (PPE); hiring of more health personnel; and purchase and
nationwide deployment of COVID-19 vaccines.
Second, we learned that everything and everyone are interconnected, and that there
are advantages to having strong interlinkages. This extends to the interdependence
between the health of the economy and the state of its healthcare system. The Plan,
therefore, must include strategies to strengthen these interlinkages and make them
robust.
Third, there are limits to government resources and capabilities; hence, the government
needs to engage meaningfully with various sectors to deliver the needed interventions.
The Plan, therefore, must include strategies to enhance collaboration with local
government units and partnerships with the private sector and civil society.
Fourth, though recovery has started, we need to fast-track investments in early warning
systems, efficient social protection programs, effective resilience-building strategies,
research and development, technology—particularly digital technology—and innovation.

Taking full awareness of emerging global and regional trends

 Health and Social Trends
o Continued impact of COVID-19
o China’s Dynamic Zero-COVID Policy
o Aging global population
o Increasing demand for healthcare workers
 Economic Trends
o Headwinds in global economic recovery
 Geopolitical Trends
o Geopolitical Trends
o Shifts in Asian investments and manufacturing
 Environmental Trends
 Technology and Regulations
o Rapid digitalization across the globe
o Global megatrends for 2030

The underlying theme of PDP 2023–2028 is transformation…

As the country faces environmental threats and climate change risks, the government
will also ensure that our natural resources are optimally used without compromising
healthful ecology for present and future generations.
Six cross-cutting strategies will serve as catalysts for economic, social, institutional, and
environmental transformation:
 Digitalization. Digital transformation of government will result in more efficient
and faster service delivery, more transparency, and fewer opportunities for
corruption at various levels. It can also help the government build robust data
systems that will create better programs, such as targeted social protection and
more efficient employment-opportunity linking systems.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a wave of digital adoption across the country. An
important development is that as more institutions and businesses digitalized, the
proportion of consumers that entered the digital marketplace also expanded rapidly. The
rapid and massive migration of people into the digital space is an opportunity to push
toward fully digitalizing sectors that have not been able to pivot their processes to
maximize the potential efficiency brought about by digitalization.
 Public-Private Partnerships. Reconfiguring public - private partnerships (PPP)
can help address cross-cutting issues of a weak competition environment and
the digital divide, as well as boost the country’s campaign to attract foreign
investments. Foreign direct investments will be harnessed as drivers of export
growth, sources of vital technology, and critical enablers of the country’s long-
term climate action.
The tight fiscal space that will constrain public investments for the next few years
provides a rationale for favoring PPPs in enhancing and upgrading infrastructure.
Larger private sector participation in areas such as housing, transport, digital, and other
related large infrastructure can free up public funds for investments in human capital to
address, for instance, the scarring from the pandemic in health care and education.
 Servicification. The government will pursue policies building ecosystems around
manufacturing clusters identified as potential sources of high growth. Priority
servicification can also be targeted towards the industries of information and
communications technology, creatives, tourism, and logistics to move up the
global value chain.
The goal is to create a supportive environment that promotes higher productivity jobs.
This strategy can be particularly targeted towards industries such as information and
communication technology, creative industries, tourism, and logistics. By doing so,
countries can enhance their global competitiveness.
 Dynamic innovation ecosystem. A dynamic innovation ecosystem refers to a
system where new ideas and inventions are constantly being created and
improved upon. In the context of agriculture, industry, and services, this means
using technology and innovative strategies to develop new products, make
processes more efficient, and increase the market share. The government plays
a role by taking a comprehensive approach to establish and strengthen this
ecosystem. Ultimately, this leads to a more advanced and successful economy,
benefiting both businesses and consumers.

 Enhanced connectivity. Digital and physical infrastructure is important for

connecting different areas together. This helps in linking markets and connecting
cities to rural areas. It also makes it easier for people to travel to places where
there are better job opportunities, healthcare, and education. This is especially
important because the country consists of many islands, making it difficult to
connect everything. By improving connectivity, the country can boost tourism,
make trade easier, and attract more investments from other countries.

 Greater collaboration between local and national government. The PDP wants
local governments to be equal partners in developing the country. The plan wants
to make sure that both the national and local governments share responsibility
for providing public services and making money for the local area. The goal is to
make sure that each local government can do a good job in providing services to
the people and make enough money to support the local area.
Strategies of the PDP
The overarching goal of the PDP 2023–2028 is to achieve economic and social transformation for a
prosperous, inclusive, and resilient society.

The strategies are organized corresponding to the following objectives:

(a) develop and protect capabilities of individuals and families;

(b) transform production sectors to generate more quality jobs and produce competitive products; and

(c) foster an enabling environment encompassing institutions, physical and natural environment, which
promotes a prosperous, inclusive, and resilient society.

For the social and human development sector, strategies include the following:
 Boost health through interventions leading to healthy schools, communities,
workplaces, and lifestyles.
 Promote and improve lifelong learning and education by providing access to
high-quality learning opportunities that develop adequate competencies and
character qualities.
 Establish livable communities by upgrading and planning human settlements
such that an integrated use of space will bring people closer to work, recreation,
and transit options.
 Ensure food security and proper nutrition through production and effective supply
management.
 Strengthen the social protection system by integrating safeguards into
development interventions and by streamlining contingency financing
mechanisms, strengthening the delivery of digital payments of cash transfers,
and expanding insurance coverage.
 Increase income-earning ability of the workforce through skills upgrading and
updating, employment facilitation services, including the reintegration of migrant
workers back to the domestic economy.
Key transformation strategies for the economic or production sector include:
 Modernize agriculture and agri-business to raise overall productivity, move
Philippine products up the value chain, promote diversification, and ensure food
security.
 Revitalize industry. The government will pursue business-matching and
encourage innovation, technology adoption, and servicification or embedding
services into manufacturing to add greater value to local products. The
government will also enable opportunities for collaboration through the co-
location of data-based enterprises and academic institutions.
 Reinvigorate services. The Philippines’ services sector will shift from its low level
of productivity to become a modern, productive, and resilient global leader
providing higher value-adding and differentiated services. The government will
boost the tourism sector as a driver of inclusive growth through strong
partnerships with enterprises and local government units. The potential of the
creative industries, information technology, and business process management
sectors will be harnessed to enable them to participate in global value chains and
to build the distinctly Filipino brand of tourism and culture.
To enable transformation, Philippine institutions will be collaborative, responsive,
reliable, and efficient in providing trustworthy, safe, and secure services. Good
governance will be a priority.

What are the goals and targets of the Plan?

In the next six years, the development agenda of the Philippines will be guided by the
following headline socioeconomic targets:
 Maintain annual economic growth rate between 6.0 to 7.0 percent in 2023 and
between 6.5 to 8.0 percent from 2024 to 2028. Sustained high levels of growth is
a necessary condition to meet the AmBisyon Natin 2040
 Create more, better, and more resilient jobs. By 2028, the unemployment rate
shall be within 4.0 to 5.0 percent, and the percentage of wage and salary workers
in private establishments to total employed shall be within 53 to 55 percent.
 Keep food and overall prices low and stable. Expanding the opportunities
available to Filipinos must be complemented by efforts to protect people’s
purchasing power. Food and overall inflation will be kept to within 2.5 to 4.5
percent in 2023 and within 2.0 to 4.0 percent from 2024 to 2028.
 Enforce fiscal discipline. To ensure the sustainability of growth, the national
government deficit to GDP ratio will be gradually reduced from 6.5 percent during
the first half of 2022 to 3.0 percent in 2028. Outstanding government debt GDP
ratio will also be reduced from 63.7 as of September 2022 to 48 to 53 percent by
end of 2028.
 Transform the production sectors through innovation. The Philippines aims to
continue its progress among the innovation achievers of the region by ranking
higher and within the top 33 percent of the Global Competitiveness Index by
2028.
 All efforts are intended to significantly improve the welfare of Filipinos. Strategies
are expected to reduce poverty incidence from 18 percent in 2021 to between 8
to 9 percent by 2028.
What can the business sector and international community expect?

The Philippine government will strengthen and facilitate PPPs, trade and investments,
research and development, and technology transfer, while encouraging robust
competition. PPPs are expected to upgrade the country’s energy, logistics,
transportation, telecommunications, and water infrastructure. The government shall
build on game-changing reforms to the investment environment such as the
amendments to the Foreign Investment Act, Retail Trade Liberalization Act, and Public
Service Act, as well as the passage of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for
Enterprises Law. Policies enabling open and competitive markets will complement these
reforms. The goal is to make it easier for companies to compete and innovate while
upholding consumer protection. Businesses will be assured of lower transactions costs,
a healthy regulatory environment, and protection from anti-competitive practices.
Through the strategies identified in the Plan, the Philippines will be open for business as
it seeks to regain its position among the most dynamic economies in Asia and the world.

Source:
Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028 - Philippine Development Plan (neda.gov.ph)