MANILA, Philippines - The country should focus on increasing the resiliency of communities against natural disasters to be able to sustain economic gains, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.
“We have made gains in economic gains in recent years and what we have to make sure is that those are sustainable gains,” Balisacan told reporters on the sidelines of the Asian Development Bank’s International Policy Advisory Group meeting.
“This means we don’t forget the environment, we make our communities more resilient, and we build back better so that we don’t go into this boom-bust growth again,” Balisacan said.
Balisacan made the comment yesterday as ADB’s meeting focused on the emerging challenges faced by the region several years after the 2008 global financial crisis.
ADB president Takehiko Nakao said Asia’s growth has been impacted by the volatile oil prices, the slowing Chinese economy, and even the pending interest rate hike in the US.
He stressed improving human capital and bridging infrastructure gaps should be among the priorities of the countries in the region to sustain strong economic growth.
Je Yoon Shin, president of the Financial Action Task Force, said in the same forum the key challenges faced by the region are its aging society as this cuts the working force and revenues for government, and the integrated financial system as this heightens contagion risks.