P-Noy’s top economic governance agenda is fiscal sustainability, DOF says
By Fayette C. Riñen
CEBU CITY, November 4 (PIA) -- Fiscal sustainability remains at the forefront of the Aquino Administration’s economic governance agenda is the message underscored by a top official of the Department of Finance (DOF) during this morning’s Philippine Economic Briefing in Cebu City.
DOF Assistant Secretary Ma. Teresa Habitan told the over 300 participants to the briefing that “our target of attaining 2.0 deficit-to-GDP (Gross Domestic Product) by 2013 is achievable given that we are addressing key areas to improve our revenue effort.”
Habitan said that despite the global economic climate, “our revenues grew close to 14 percent in the first half, surpassing the country’s nominal GDP growth rate of 8.7 percent.”
“Our strict enforcement of administrative measures such as the Run After Tax Evaders (RATE), Run After the Smugglers (RATS) and Revenue Integrity Protection Service (RIPS) are sending the right signals to the market,” Habitan stressed.
The DOF official said that to strengthen its commitment to improving revenue generation, their agency will invest in the revenue generating agencies’ infrastructure, information technology, people and process.
The country’s improving balance sheet is evidenced by the decline of the national government’s debt-to-GDP ratio to 51.3 percent as of June 2011.
“Netting out the debt holdings of government agencies of Philippine debt, real debt of the Philippines is actually just 42.2 percent as of 2010 of GDP. Thereby moving the country much closer to its credit rating peers. The country’s external debt-to-GDP is down to 28.8 percent as of end-June, this year. Our goal is to bring it down to 20 percent,” Habitan said.
Towards the direction for the country to have a positive investment grade, Habitan disclosed that “the Philippines has gone a long way and the government will continue to focus on getting the country deeper into a virtuous cycle of lower debt and lower interest expense to have more fiscal space and spend for infrastructure and social services.”
Habitan said this objective of getting deeper into the virtuous cycle will help us attain an investment grade status.
The briefing was attended by heads of national government agencies and leaders of the business and academic sectors as well as other stakeholders and is the second destination of the domestic roadshow of the Philippine Economic Briefing.
Other areas where the briefing will be conducted are Laoag City, Subic, Baguio City, Batangas City and Puerto Princesa. (PIA-Cebu with PR from Investor Relations Office)
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DOST-NRCP hosts International science confab
By: Hazel Gloria
CEBU CITY, November 3 (PIA) --- The Department of Science and Technology’s National Research Council of the Philippines (DOST-NRCP) will host the 12th International Council for Science (ICSU) Regional Committee Meeting for Asia and the Pacific on November 11-12, 2011 at Marriott Hotel Cebu, Cebu City.
The NRCP meeting will feature best practices and lessons in science and health education promotion; green productivity strategy; and other issues in a changing urban environment.
DOST Secretary Mario Montejo will lead the Philippine delegation with DOST Undersecretary for R&D Graciano Yumul, Jr.
Expected to participate in the meeting are delegations from the 10 member-nations in the Asia Pacific Region headed by the technical paper presenters, namely: Prof. Bruce John McKeltiar, chair of the School of Physics in the University of Melbourne, Australia; Prof. Soottipom Chitttmittrapap, secretary general of the National Research Council of Thailand; and Prof. Hong-Kum Lee, president of the Korea Polar Research Institute, Republic of Korea.
Other participants will represent the rest of the member-nations, including China, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, India, Iran, and Sri Lanka.
Invited to grace this scientific activity is Honorable Cebu City Governor Gwen Garcia while the DOST Region VII Director Rene Burt N. Llanto is tapped to formally open the confab by welcoming the members of the region and local delegations and the members DOST-NRCP.(PIA-7/HFG & DOST)