This study examines "choke points" in the supply chain of two selected commodity groups that are of interest to the ASEAN region; within the HS15 group the study focuses on crude coconut oil (CNO); for HS03 the study covers fish and crustacean, mollusks, and other aquatic invertebrates (HS 03)....

The amendment of the existing excise tax law on tobacco and alcoholic products is the only revenue measure that the Aquino administration has certified as urgent to date. This paper reviews and evaluates the different versions of both houses of the sin tax reform measure. Republic Act (RA)...

This study examines the performance of the National Food Authority (NFA) with respect to its function of price stability and implications for public finances, and recommends policy reforms where warranted. It finds that NFA has been unsuccessful in stabilizing producer prices, but relatively...

The paper argues the case for developing more innovative financing schemes for the water supply sector. The use of traditional ODA-dependent financing channeled through government lending institutions has a somewhat moderate success record in developing and improving the water supply sector....

When the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program was designed, the government publicly promised to limit to five years the giving of the education and health grants. This five-year limit is almost over for the first set of beneficiaries by 2013. The natural policy question then is: Would it be wise...

This paper discusses the nature of the rules of origin (ROOs) in the ASEAN+1 FTAs, particularly with respect to features and characteristics that could either facilitate or hinder the development of value chains, and the participation of firms in the increased globalization of production. By...

The Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF) is an ongoing loan and grant program in the Philippines for agriculture and fisheries. From the start of its actual implementation in 2000 up to the present, it has been plagued by numerous problems which significantly derailed the...

In the Philippines, no assessment has been done yet on the impacts of changes in household income and the free public secondary education act (Republic Act 6655) on the outcomes of education. Thus, this paper inquires on the impacts of these two factors on schooling outcomes, namely, net...

This study attempts to measure subsidies to agricultural credit in recent years and provides policy implications. It finds that credit policy has evolved, from provision of subsidized credit to one that is more market-oriented, focusing on providing access to credit to farmers while exposing...

Fertilizer policy in the country has evolved from pervasive interventionism in the 1970s to today`s market-oriented regime. Government has abandoned price policies and subsidies, focusing rather on standard setting, quality regulation, and training. Over the same period domestic demand for...