The Philippine economy has seen strong growth surpassing China, but wealth is slow to trickle down to many people. While the economy has been solid for several years, local businesses only recently started increasing spending due to past political instability and a wary investment climate. The Aquino administration has boosted infrastructure spending, which has helped push economic growth above seven percent, but unemployment remains at 7.5% and many minimum wage earners and those in the informal sector say they have not seen higher earnings from the growing economy. Reducing corruption under Aquino has made a positive impact on the lives of poor people according to one leader.

1. BALITAAN

2. Philippine Economy Grows but
Wealth Slow to Trickle Down

3. MANILA — The Philippines' economic wealth is evident with
growth surpassing that of China, new investment grade credit
ratings and a surging stock market. But how many people are
sharing in the country's new wealth?
Philippine Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio
Balisacan said while the economy has been solid for several
years, local businesses only started to increase spending
about a year ago.
“People initially were taking a wait and see attitude, you
know, one year or two years of wait and see," he said. "And
you can’t really blame that.”
Balisacan said the country’s economy in the last four decades
has had a “boom and bust” pattern mainly because of political
instability, which has created a wary investment climate.

4. In recent years, the administration under President
Benigno Aquino has tried to improve the country’s
financial reputation by cleaning up corruption and
prosecuting tax cheats and officials accused of graft.
Balisacan said the government also boosted
infrastructure spending, which has helped push
economic growth beyond seven percent for the
past three quarters.
“What exactly have been the major constraints to
investments, whether it’s domestic or foreign?
Number one that comes out is infrastructure, the
quality of infrastructure,” he said.

5. The country’s unemployment rate was 7.5 percent in the first
quarter. Twenty percent of its workforce remains
“underemployed,” working for far less than 40 hours a week.
About one-third of the 97 million people in the Philippines
lives in poverty and the Aquino administration says it is now
focused on including the marginalized in its growth picture.
Other minimum-wage earners complain that the growing
economy has meant higher costs of goods. And those in the
so-called “informal sector” such as street vendors and
garbage pickers say there is no difference at all in their
earnings.
Even so, Jose Morales, who heads the Urban Poor Alliance,
said the Aquino administration’s focus on cleaning up
corruption is making a big impact on poor people’s lives.