Filipinos appreciate what the private sector has done, is doing, and how big its role is in driving economic prosperity. The latest Pulse Asia survey commissioned by our organization, the Stratbase ADR Institute, revealed that almost nine in 10 Filipinos agree that the private sector plays a crucial role in accelerating economic growth, and that the government and the private sector should engage in partnership to sustain the country’s recovery. Read More

A Philippine president’s six-year term is composed of 2,190 days. Still, we assign great importance to the first 100 days, even though it is a fraction of the total number, because of several reasons: The initial period gives us an initial impression of what the entire presidency might be like, and a preview of the things it deems important. It gives us a taste of a particular president’s brand of leadership, and an idea of what to expect for the remainder of his term. We get a sense of whether we should brace ourselves for a difficult ride, or rest assured that our country — even if beset by many problems — is under sound stewardship. Read More

The Philippines slipped seven spots in the International Institute for Management Development’s (IMD) 2021 World Competitiveness Report. We placed 52nd out of 64 countries in 2021, down from 45th the previous year.

It was the steepest decline in Asia. Read More

The first 100 days of any president elected into office is worth watching, as this can serve as a snapshot of how the leader will govern during his term. President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. had early on made headlines worldwide when he won the May 2022 National Elections. The political environment has become more interesting and inviting as the new administration pronounces sound fiscal management, good governance, food security, not giving an inch of Philippine territory, and all-inclusive recovery. Read More

A few days after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in early August 2022, the People’s Liberation Army’s Navy deployed warships and aircraft into waters and airspace near the self-governing island to show its growing naval prowess.   Read More

For the past six years, the previous administration enveloped Philippine infrastructure development in the “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) program, an ambitious venture that was meant to usher the country into its “Golden Age of Infrastructure” and address the gaps and inadequacies in Philippine infrastructure. At the onset, the BBB program projected a positive development trend as the government’s infrastructure spending came to occupy the desired percentage vis-à-vis the country’s gross domestic product. Read More

On Sept. 29, 2022, Philippine Department of National Defense (DND) Undersecretary and Officer-in-Charge Jose Faustino and US Secretary of Department of Defense (DoD) Lloyd J. Austin announced their countries’ commitment to the 1951 Philippine-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT). The commitment would be seen through the enhancement of maritime cooperation and improvement of their respective armed forces’ interoperability and information sharing. Both secretaries acknowledged the need to secure the Philippines’ future, address regional security challenges, and promote peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region. Read More