(Eagle News) — President Bongbong Marcos urged business leaders in Cambodia to “have a look at the opportunities that are available” in the Philippines.
The President, who is in Phnom Penh to attend the 40th and 41st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit and Other Related Summits, made the pitch as he noted it appeared the “route that we have taken is taking the economy in the right direction.”
“I do not talk about recovery of the economy, I talk about transformation of the economy because the new economy is going to be different from everything that we did in 2019. And so this is what we are looking forward to and I hope to see you all in the Philippines soon,” he said.
In making his pitch, the President also cited the report of the Philippine Statistics Authority that noted that the unemployment rate in the country stood at 5 percent, which meant that the number of jobless Filipinos was down to 2.5 million.
He also noted the National Economic Development Authority’s report that Philippine economic growth had accelerated by 7.6% from July to September.
A growth of 7.5% had been reported in the previous quarter.
Philippine government housing goals
During the meeting with business leaders, the President also discussed what he said was his administration’s goal to address the backlog of six million housing units for Filipinos.
He said the goal was the construction of one million low-cost and socialized homes each year.
While “an ambitious number,” he said “we will try very, very hard.”
According to the Office of the Press Secretary, the Philippines and Cambodia also agreed to increase their cooperation in various areas, including agriculture (mechanization, rice importation, and food processing); micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs); energy; and low-cost housing.
The President is also expected to meet with other global leaders during the ASEAN event slated from Thursday, November 10, to Sunday, November 13.