‘Accountability to aid recovery’Noting that redeeming trust requires visible compliance, Philippine Institute for Development Studies senior research fellow John Paolo Rivera said key priorities for next year include spending efficiency, tighter procurement and food price stability, among others. Rivera said restoring public trust would require visible accountability, including pursuing cases and enforcing rules, clearer policy communication and consistent implementation across government agencies. And therefore, we have penciled in a gross domestic product growth forecast for 2026 of about 5.6 percent,” he said. The economist said the country could have reached six percent growth if not for inefficiencies in public infrastructure, particularly flood control projects. Former finance chief Ralph Recto also said the economy could have grown by as much as six percent without the economic losses from flood control projects that may have reached P118 billion from 2023 to 2025.

Source: Philippine Star December 30, 2025 16:46 UTC