The Philippines needs at least P1 trillion worth of investments annually to become a middle-income economy by 2022, a Finance official said.
Newly-appointed Finance Undersecretary and chief economist Karl Kendrick Chua said the amount would be on top of the current rate of investment.
“Our estimate is to achieve our targets of higher income status and to eradicate poverty, we need to raise investments by P1 trillion every year on top of the P1 trillion that we invest. This is to bring us to the level where our neighbors have experienced when they were growing to become upper middle income country and to eradicate poverty,” Chua said in a recent hearing at the House ways and means committee.
The amount will be used to bridge the gap on key public investments in the country, he said.
Chua said for the near term, or the next three years, about P600 billion was expected to be raised equally from improved tax administration, customs administration and savings from spending.
The remaining P400 billion will be raised from tax policy or equivalent to about 2 percent of the economy.
