The Philippines remains one of the fastest-growing economies in the region, but economic growth must translate into better public services and improvements in the lives of Filipinos, Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said Monday.

“We are now midway through the Philippine Development Plan 2023–2028, and just 15 years away from our long-term vision under Ambisyon Natin 2040—a vision of secure, comfortable, and prosperous lives for all Filipinos. As the President has often underscored, development must not be measured only in numbers, but in the meaningful change that uplifts people’s lives,” Balisacan said during the Philippine Development Forum 2025.

“The message of PDF 2025 is clear: the Philippines remains one of the fastest-growing economies in emerging Asia, with 5.4 percent growth in the first half of the year. But growth is not enough—it must translate into better public services, greater opportunities, and real improvements in the lives of our people,” he added.

Balisacan said the government is making sure that every peso is wisely spent.

He said the government pushed for streamlined project approvals, simplified grant processes, and enacted key laws—including the Public-Private Partnership Code, the Accelerated Right-of-Way Act, the Government Optimization Act, and the E-Governance Act to strengthen transparency, accountability, and trust.

Led by DEPDev, the Philippine Development Forum (PDF) 2025, brought together government agencies, development partners, and members of the diplomatic and business communities to align efforts, assess progress, and chart a unified path forward.

The forum is the government’s primary platform for policy dialogue and coordination with development partners.

It highlighted the outputs of four Sectoral Working Groups (SWGs), which conducted months-long consultations to identify policy and financing priorities.

Their recommendations focused on enhancing human capital through improved health, education, and social protection systems; modernizing agriculture and industries to generate quality jobs and boost competitiveness; building resilient and future-ready infrastructure to improve connectivity and sustainability; and advancing governance reforms.

The final outputs and commitments from the Forum were endorsed by the PDF Steering Committee, through the DEPDev, to President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.

“We will continue to strengthen our monitoring and evaluation systems to guide budget alignment and ensure that every intervention delivers value and impact,” Balisacan said.

World Bank Division Director for the Philippines Zafer Mustafaoglu, for his part, assured that development partners such as the World Bank remain committed to helping the Philippines achieve its PDP targets.

“Collectively, development partners stand ready to extend around USD50 billion in support for the next three years, if requested by the Philippine government, to accelerate the delivery of better services for Filipino citizens,” he said.

Mustafaoglu assured that the World Bank will continue to advance health, education, nutrition, and social protection, and support industries, micro, small, and medium enterprises, farmers and fisherfolk to boost productivity.

He said the World Bank will mobilize resources and technical expertise to build modern and resilient transport systems, safe and sustainable water and sanitation, and digital connectivity needed to bridge communities and markets

“We will help strengthen governance, accelerate digital transformation and advance peace through local government capacity building. The next three years are decisive. We will act with urgency and focus, working double-time with the government to meet PDP targets and deliver tangible improvements in people’s lives,” Mustafaoglu said. (PNA)