MANILA - Some of the Philippines’ biggest business groups on Thursday said they are eager to see if Marcos can deliver on the promises he made during his first State of the Nation Address.

The Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc (FFCCCII), Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), and Philippine Exporters Confederation (PHILEXPORT) said they want to see Marcos follow up on his SONA vows especially on agriculture, infrastructure and medium, small and micro enterprises.

FFCCCII president Henry Lim Bon Liong said he was encouraged by the many SONA promises for agriculture.

Lim said he hopes that, with the President personally handling agriculture, the sector might enjoy a larger budget and more resources.

"President BongBong Marcos has really put himself as the head of DA [Department of Agriculture]. He is giving some importance to this department. It has been a laggard. Agri has produced a very low GDP growth,” Lim said.

Lim, who is chairman and CEO of SL Agritech, said he believes in aiming for self-sufficiency in the farm sector, and that Marcos’ focus on local production can help slow inflation.

“Food prices are going up, chicken, even fish. BBM [Bongbong Marcos] when he was saying he would like to sell rice at P20 per kilo, if he is able to do that, then we can drive down inflation,” he said.

While Lim also said it may not be possible to sell rice at P20 per kilo to the entire market, he believes selling rice at that price to more vulnerable sectors is achievable.

PCCI president George Barcelon and PHILEXPORT president and CEO Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr meanwhile, also welcomed Marcos’ statements on infrastructure.

Ortiz-Luis is eager to see how Marcos plans on creating jobs, and he is excited about the promise to continue the Build Build Build initiative of the Duterte administration.

Barcelon said the Philippines can afford to borrow more as long as the money is used for badly needed infrastructure and policy support for the economy.

He said the rise in the country’s debt-to-GDP level from 40 percent before the pandemic to over 60 percent today was not a cause for concern.

“But we are comfortable with that because other countries, their debt-to-GDP is 100 percent or much more,” Barcelon said.

Ortiz-Luis meanwhile noted Marcos’ lack of detailed programs for MSMEs.

"You know our MSMEs in the Philippines are the most underfunded MSMEs in Asia,” Ortiz-Luis said.

He said if the government can commit to MSMEs the same amount it spends conditional cash transfers, MSMEs could provide many more jobs and boost economic activity.

Marcos, he noted, is also not clear on how the government will manage the funding given other SONA promises such as the creation of a new Department of Water, the funding of the Department of Overseas Filipino Workers, and the reduction of the government’s debt.

“I cannot reconcile the fact that they are saying there will be no new taxes, and no new borrowings. I do not know how we will do other projects in Build Build Build, unless we raise the money somehow. I trust the economic managers can solve this problem,” Ortiz-Luis said.

The three groups sare optimistic the Philippine economy will perform well this year. FFCCCII sees growth at 7 to 9 percent for 2022; PCCI sees growth at 7 to 8 percent; while PHILEXPORT sees economic expansion at 6.5 to 7.5 percent–the same forecast as the government.

• Marcos vows to finish ongoing infrastructure projects, including Mindanao railway
• SONA 2022: Marcos urged to focus on agri smuggling

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