The study identifies outstanding issues and bottlenecks and provides recommendations to facilitate the Philippines' full compliance to its commitments to the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). Various in-depth interviews and surveys were conducted with concerned stakeholders from government...

Private firms invest in physical capital and human resource but they are also advised to invest in innovations to be more productive and profitable. Innovations refer to the development, deployment, and economic utilization of new products, processes, and services. It is important for firms to...

Within the context of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Scorecard mechanism developed by the ASEAN Secretariat to monitor the implementation of the AEC Blueprint, the study focuses on the current state, performance and impact of investment liberalization and facilitation, trade facilitation,...

Within the context of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Scorecard mechanism developed by the ASEAN Secretariat to monitor the implementation of the AEC Blueprint, the study focuses on the current state, performance and impact of investment liberalization and facilitation, trade facilitation,...

The promise and potential of the Philippine economy has remained unrealized notwithstanding the countrys talented labor force, skilled professionals and relatively abundant resources. What ails the Philippines? This paper argues that the incompetence and downright corruption of Philippine...

A recent publication of the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has highlighted the food insecurity problem facing the globe : food production will have to increase by 70% in 2050 to keep up with a global population that is projected to grow from 6 billion to 9 billion. There has to be...

The Philippines has used the BOT law, as amended to motivate private sector provision of infrastructure. Using examples from selected BOT projects in the country, the paper pointed out key issues constraining the successful implementation of the BOT approach to infrastructure provision. It also...

The paper reviews the innovations developed by some financial institutions to meet the challenges of microfinance and rural finance markets. Innovations could be new products and methodologies or refinements to existing practices that are created in response to market inefficiencies and changing...

Illness or injury, death of a family member, man-made calamities and natural disasters have a devastating effect on those poor households cash flow, liquidity and earning capacities and thus, on household welfare. Demand for micro-insurance products is growing in view of continuing risks to...

Statistics on the distribution of ODA loans show that the local government sector is the smallest direct recipient of this funding source. While it has been observed that the amount of ODA grants and the number of ODA grant projects have been declining over the years, several factors could...