VANCOUVER, Canada — Malacañang said on Friday (Saturday in Manila) that it rejects the claim of IBON Foundation that the Philippines’ upper-middle-income status is irrelevant to poor Filipinos.
The World Bank on Wednesday classified the Philippines as an upper-middle-income economy based on gross national income per capita thresholds.
“Actually, the World Bank’s recognition that the Philippines has reached upper-middle-income status is an important milestone because this is the first time since 1987 that our level has improved. So we should be proud of this,” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said during a press conference here.
Castro noted that the country’s new economic classification should not be interpreted as an end to financial hardship.
“This does not mean that every Filipino is now at a level where they will no longer face financial challenges. We know that many of our fellow citizens still need help and decent jobs,” she said.
Castro said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. viewed the country’s new status as a stepping stone rather than the administration’s final economic objective.
“So, becoming an upper-middle-income country is not the finish line. It is not the end. The country still has a lot to do for the economy to progress further,” she said.
The Palace official said the government would continue implementing programs aimed at addressing poverty, hunger and other social concerns.
“That is where the administration’s interventions come in. Even on issues of hunger, the government is implementing interventions and necessary measures so our countrymen can feel improvements in their lives,” Castro said.
IBON Foundation Executive Director Sonny Africa earlier said that the much-celebrated economic reclassification of the country is “meaningless” to most Filipinos.
“PH getting so-called upper-middle income status amid its first ‘trilyonaryo’ while some 15 million Filipino families are poor and another seven million lower-middle class says it all,” Africa said in a Facebook post on Thursday.
“All it does is confirm how much needs to be done to fix worsening inequality in the country,” he added.
Castro credited the country’s improved economic standing to the administration’s economic policies and efforts to attract more investments into the country.
She said Marcos believed the achievement was partly driven by efforts to make the Philippines more attractive to both local and foreign investors.
“Many sectors of the economy and government still need to be improved and modernized to sustain the country’s growth,” she added.
