In a video conference held at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) recently, Professor Jeffrey Sachs, special adviser to the UN Secretary General on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and Dr. Hafiz A. Pasha, assistant UN secretary general and director of United Nations Development Program (UNDP)’s regional bureau for Asia and the Pacific, praised the Philippine government’s efforts to formulate the six-year program.
Both, however, pointed out the major challenges the government faces in financing the plan as the Philippines remains burdened by poor revenue generation compounded by high public spending.
"Let me congratulate the Philippine government for successfully formulating the MTPDP, (which, although) done within a remarkably short period of time is (still) very comprehensive with all the chapters elaborating on various aspects of development," Pasha said.
They called the plan an impressive document, filled with good ideas and good programs as it "touched on all the major areas that are important in a plan."
But Sachs suggested figuring out ways on how the international community can help the Philippines finance programs under the MTPDP.
Pasha, on the other hand, said a more focused and stronger statement on how revenue measures can be strengthened must be looked into since these are being expected to solve the country’s consolidated public sector deficit.
Malacañang, meanwhile, reiterated yesterday that President Arroyo is determined to cut by half the country’s 38 percent poverty incidence within the next six years as laid down in the MTPDP, under her 10-point "legacy" program.
Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye noted this goal is the long-term solution to end hunger for more than a third of 80 million Filipinos.
"Uplifting the lives of poor Filipino families has always been on top of the President’s priority agenda, as reflected in the MTPDP, backed by the fiscal measures being shepherd by the national leadership," he said.
"We acknowledge that there is still much to be done in poverty alleviation but with earnest efforts to put our fiscal house in order, we have more reason to be confident in achieving our goals," he said.
For his part, Socio-economic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri said the government would be more selective on official development assistance (ODA) as these are supply-driven and expensive.
"We choose the right projects and assets that will maximize economic benefits and not financially encumber the government given its present fiscal problems," Neri, who is also director general of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), said.
The government also claims to focus on growth through the rural areas.
"We are now making the local governments the strategic development units, especially in the provincial levels so that we can bring these high economic growth and lower poverty agenda at their level," he explained, adding that NEDA’s emphasis at present is to enhance livelihood and microfinance that will reach out to the poor.
On the fiscal and financial issue, Neri said that the MTPDP depends to a great extent on private sector response to policy reforms to finance the more ambitious investment targets to fund its implementation.
After admitting that the country is facing a fiscal crisis, President Arroyo has implemented a series of austerity measures along with eight proposed tax reform measures to generate revenues.
Malacañang has stressed at least two be passed this year, and has been pushing for the approval of the indexation of sin taxes due to the enormous revenue generating potential it would bring government.
In the meantime, the President has instructed her Cabinet to make the MTPDP function-based instead of institution-based.
At the same time, she urged all Cabinet members to work together to achieve synergy and harmony among all the chapters of the plan.
In a Cabinet meeting in Malacañang last week, the President further said that "it is crucial in achieving the 10-point development agenda, which is the backbone of the 2005-2010 MTPDP."
Neri presented the draft MTPDP stressing that the plan marks a distinct shift from the traditional sector-based approach to one that is more target-based and implementation-oriented. All budgetary and departmental programs will be aligned with the policy directions and targets set in Mrs. Arroyo’s 10-point agenda.
"These packages include economic growth and job creation, energy independence, social justice and basic needs, education and youth opportunity, and anti-corruption and good governance," he explained.
The NEDA chief also said that the 2004-2010 MTPDP provides specific targets, strategies, and action plans covering the five key reform packages, enumerated in Arroyo’s State of the Nation Address () last July.
The 2004-2010 MTPDP has an accompanying strategic planning matrix (SPMs), which identifies the lead agency and measurable output targets. The SPMs will serve as basis of the Medium-Term Public Investment Plan (MTPIP) due for release end December.
The NEDA is also formulating the regional development programs and the regional development investment programs. — With Marichu Villanueva