President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.

has vowed to support the agriculture sector, make healthcare accessible

to Filipinos nationwide, and to make Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) mandatory in Senior
High School. 

Marcos has also asked Congress to pass some priority measures, which included the National
Government Rightsizing Program, the National Budget Modernization Bill and the Tax Package 3
Valuation Reform Bill.

President Bongbong Marcos SONA: Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Romualdez Marcos, Jr., 17th President of the
Republic of the Philippines’ 2022 State of the Nation Address at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City.
On Economy
 Sound fiscal management
 Increase revenue and productivity
 PH as ‘investment destination’ eyed.
 Imposition of tax to digital goods mentioned.
 Tax system to be adjusted to catch up digital economy.
 Middle-income status goal to be attained by 2024.
 Strengthen the foreign investment act.
On Agriculture
 Increase production next planting season.
 Provide financial and technical aid to farmers.
 Improve agrarian reform program.
 Payments of land reform beneficiaries condoned.
 Strengthen agriculture value chain.
 Push modern technology.
 Build farm to market roads.
On Tourism
 Improve linkages to tourism spots.
 Strengthen ‘PH Brand’.
On Health and Social Welfare
 Operation centers for provision relief goods
 Emergency shelter during calamities
 Comprehensive assistance for individuals in crisis
 Clean list beneficiaries
 Specialized hospitals in regional centers
 Improve welfare health workers
On Education
 Face to face classes pushed.
 K to 12 to be carefully reviewed.
 Substandard school supplies must end.
 STEMS subjects need to be improved.
 Mandatory ROTC and NSTP pushed.
On Energy
 Focus on renewable energy.
 Traditional and renewable energy supported.
 Nuclear power plant adherent to international standards.
 Provide incentives to natural gas.
 Environmental laws enforced.
On Transport
 “Full speed ahead”.
 Ongoing projects will not be suspended.
 Private-public partnerships for infrastructure.
 Railway projects encouraged.
On Digitization
 Technological innovation improves governance.
  National ID pushed.
 Digitization to connect various islands.
 Broadband ng Masa for isolated areas
On PH Territory
 “I will not abandon one inch of PH territory”
On Priority Legislations
 National Government’s Rightsizing Program
 Budget Modernization Bill
 Tax Package 3
 Tax Package 4
 E-Government Act
 E-Commerce Law
 Initiatives to distressed enterprises
 Establishment of medical reserve corps
 National Disease Prevention Management Authority
 Virology Institute of the Philippines
 Department of Water Resources
 Unified System of Separation, Retirement, Pension
 E-Governance act
 National Land Use Act
 National Defense Act
 Mandatory ROTC and NSTP
 Law for the natural gas industry
 Amendments to EPIRA Act
 Amendments to Build-Operate-Transfer Law

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will lay down his agenda before
Congress for the first time, with economic challenges looming large in the early days of his
administration.

Business and industry groups want to hear Marcos talk about how he would tackle soaring prices,
record debt and food supply woes in the speech scheduled for 4 p.m. local time Monday. Also
awaited during the annual State of the Nation Address are his pandemic recovery plan and
infrastructure roadmap.

Marcos is starting his six-year term “with headwinds already there,” said Philippine Chamber of
Commerce and Industry President George Barcelon. “These are not of the new administration’s
doing but these are issues they have to deal with.”

While the Philippines remains one of Asia’s fastest growing economies, the quickest inflation since
2018 and rising interest rates are threatening pandemic recovery. Elevated oil prices and supply
logjams that are the fallout from the war in Ukraine have also dimmed the global outlook.

Agriculture

Marcos, who’s also the agriculture secretary, has to give “total support” to the farm sector to avert a
food crisis and tame price increases, said Joji Co, president of the Philippine Confederation of
Grains Association. 

Marcos should set clear plans on how to boost food production, and allot a bigger budget to
modernize farms, Co said. Agriculture posted the smallest growth among major industries in the
first quarter, with a 0.2% expansion.

Debt & Taxes

Marcos will present in detail his government’s medium-term fiscal framework aimed at reducing the
budget deficit and driving growth, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said earlier this month.

The new government may need to pursue tax reform measures to boost collections and bring down
the debt-to-GDP ratio to “more sustainable levels” below 60%, said Michael Ricafort, an economist
at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. That will prevent any credit rating downgrade, he said.

Marcos’s plans on how to boost revenues and whether he’ll borrow more or raise taxes are keenly
awaited in the market, said Astro del Castillo, managing director at First Grade Finance Inc.

Covid response

Marcos will draw attention to pandemic response, particularly how to strengthen the health system
and boost the economic recovery, Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez said July 22. The president will
also present plans on school reopening, and providing better Internet connection for those who will
still need online classes.

Jobs
Creation of more jobs is among the priorities of investors after the pandemic increased the number
of unemployed over the last two years. The jobless rate was at 6% in May, latest data from the
statistics agency showed.

“How to improve government service in health and education and how jobs will be created - that’s
what our countrymen want to hear in the upcoming SONA,” said Senator Sonny Angara.

Infrastructure

The market will be on the lookout for government’s infrastructure investment policy, said Cristina
Ulang, head of research at First Metro Investment Corp. “It’s closely watched because it’s a growth
stimulus and a test of how well regulatory framework will be executed,” she said. 

“We hope the president sends more signals that business is welcome again as a partner; that laws,
franchises, and contracts will be upheld and targeting businesses politically be stopped,” Makati
Business Club Executive Director Coco Alcuaz said. 

Former President Rodrigo Duterte cracked down on some of the biggest businesses during his term
as he pushed a populist agenda that endeared him to his supporters.

A healthier relationship between government and businesses will help boost private investment in
infrastructure projects which the country needs for growth, Alcuaz said.