MANILA— The Philippines may become an upper middle-income country by 2022 as the country continued to show positive economic growth this year, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said on Saturday.

NEDA Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon said the country was forecast to reach this from its current status as a lower middle-income country supposedly in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

• READ: Philippine economy grows 7.1 percent in third quarter as recovery continues

Based on World Bank's current standards, an upper middle-income country has a per capita income of between $4,096 and $12,695. Thailand and Malaysia are Southeast Asian countries currently holding such status.

"Tingin namin, by 2022, mare-reach natin ang upper middle-income country. Ang ibig sabihin din kasi nito is patuloy na umaangat ang antas ng kabuhayan natin," Edillon explained in a public briefing.

(We think that by 2022, we could become an upper middle-income country. This means that our quality of living continues to improve.)

• READ: Who are identified rich, poor? Gov't shows income class brackets in PH

"Malaking bagay itong pagiging upper middle-income country na ito. Malaking challenge talaga 'yung iba, it takes several decades para makarating," she noted.

(This is a big thing because this is a challenge for some countries)

The official added that this could mean that the country could have a high credit rating, thus wider access to more capital.

Such status may also mean more employment opportunities and "higher income" for Filipinos.

"So mas matutulungan ang ating mga gustong mag-expand ng negosyo kasi mas magiging maraming available na capital sa kanila and then lesser ang cost of capital," she added.

(This could help businesses that want to expand, as more capital will be available to them at a lesser cost.)

"Kapag magiging mas marami ang investments na yun, mas marami ring pwedeng maging trabaho ng ating mga kababayan."

(If there are plenty of investments, then many jobs will be available here.)

The statement from the official came after the Philippine Statistics Authority this week said the country's gross domestic product expanded 7.1 percent in the third quarter.

For the first three quarters of 2021, the Philippine economy’s average growth rate was at 4.9 percent, and it is on course to hitting the government’s full-year growth forecast range of 4 to 5 percent.

Edillon said because of this, the country could reach its "pre-pandemic level" of economy by the end of the year or the first quarter of next year, as the country accelerates COVID-19 vaccinations.

"Most probably, kung mahihigitan natin 'yung (if we can surpass the) target na 4 to 5 percent, then baka by the end of the year, makakarating na tayo sa ating pre-pandemic levels (maybe we can reach our pre-pandemic level)."

• READ: PH economy could grow 6.8 pct in 2022 after 'resilient' Q3: Fitch Ratings

In 2020 the Philippine economy contracted by 17 percent in the second quarter, and 11.6 percent in the third.

For the whole of last year, the economy contracted 9.6 percent, its worst performance since the end of World War 2, largely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the mobility restrictions and business shutdowns that followed.

Metro Manila's last week shifted to Alert Level 2 amid the slow down of new COVID-19 infections, allowing more businesses to reopen.

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