Analysis Between the years 2004 and 2005, around the time of President Gloria Arroyo was elected,

there was a significant drop in the Philippines Economic Freedom score from the 60s going down to the mid-50s score. Since then, the score of the Philippines remained steady at the 55 mark. Compared to the free economies, the Philippines score is lower by almost 30 points. For a free capitalist country, the Philippines score qualifies as mostly unfree, same group as socialist China and several other third world countries. The data from the Economic Index are collected during 2009, hence, reflects the economic freedom during the reign of our former President GMA. Judging from the Philippiness scores in the ten economic freedoms, it seems that the countrys situation is getting worse. Our country is rich in land and labor resources but significantly lack capital and entrepreneurial skills. Our business freedom score of 43.4 implies that instead of solving the problem of our need for potential businessmen, our regulatory and legal framework is actually hindering them. Here in the Philippines, registering a business in could take almost a month, not yet taking into consideration the permits that need to be processed. When the business involves importing or exporting to other countries, the process could take even longer, especially with all the red tape that is going on. In Hongkong, the no. 1 freest country in the economic index, a business can start operating after only 7 days. Out of the ten economic freedoms, freedom from corruption scored the lowest with a 24 out of a 100.