Hanoi (VNA) – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has said in order to help control consumer prices, the Government aims to increase domestic food production and promptly enhance the supply through imports. This means priority will be given to the development of the agriculture sector, which has long been neglected.
The President made the point in his recent State of the Nation Address, in which he highlighted the achievements made by hisadministration in the past year, including efforts to combat inflation andrestore economic growth, especially increasing agricultural production to curbinflation.
The President also reiterated the commitment to investing inroads, seaports, airports, and water sources, allocating a budget forinfrastructure at a level equivalent to 6% of GDP.
Regarding climate change, the leader highlighted the need to transition torenewable energy and low-emission energy sources, with the goal of meeting 35%of the country's energy needs from renewable sources by 2030 and 50% by 2040.
He alsocalled on lawmakers to support his priority measures, which include movingtowards taxing single-use plastics and reforming the salary system of the armyand police.
The Philippines recorded an annual inflation of 5.4% in June, down for the fifth consecutive month but still higher than the target of 2-4% that the government set for this year.
President Marcos set atarget of achieving an 8% economic growth this year, aiming to keep thePhilippines among the fastest-growing economies in Asia. Additionally, he lookedto reduce the poverty rate by half, which stood at 18.1% in 2021./.
