In the wake of the mobility restrictions during the strict quarantine conditions last year, Philippine telcos have reported a 500% increase in data usage when lockdowns started last year because of the massive shift to online services to adapt to travel restrictions and working from home. This is a pandemic induced phenomenon that has permanently… Read More

It is with pleasure that we share with you our January 2021 Occasional Paper entitled, “The 2021 National Budget: What Promise Does it Bring to the Filipino People?” and authored by our very own Edwin P. Santiago (Member, Editorial Board) and Venice Isabelle T. Rañosa (Research Manager). As you may have known, the GAA of… Read More

Dr. Jaime Jimenez, Deputy Executive Director for Research, Stratbase ADR Institute In a pandemic, the prevention of a wider spread of a virus and economic recovery are the essentials of the day. Among other things, budgeting during a pandemic needs to focus on three things: response measures, social protection, and economic stimulus. The theme of… Read More

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed a hidden weakness of global economies: healthcare systems are not as healthy as we thought they were. The pandemic showed that even the best healthcare systems of the most technologically advanced countries can be strained in the absence of a basic cure in the form of a working vaccine. Since the… Read More

Dindo Manhit, President, Stratbase ADR Institute Turning over to a new year always gives Filipinos new hope. Last year, with its economic turmoil, health risks, and social uproar, was challenging, to say the least. Many have taken to calling 2020 a “lost year.” An apt description given the lives, businesses, opportunities, and the suffering over… Read More

Paco A. Pangalangan, Executive Director, Stratbase ADR Institute The other day, Moody’s Analytics reported that it expects the Philippines to be the last economy in the Asia Pacific Region to fully recover from the recession induced by COVID-19. Moody’s also said the Philippines and India are the countries least committed to fiscal stimulus despite being… Read More

Dindo Manhit, President, Stratbase ADR Institute The year 2020 has been the most challenging period for the Duterte Administration. On one hand, Philippine governance and society are now confronted by compound problems caused by or aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic and government measures to control the spread of infections—a weak health care system, inadequate social… Read More