THE World Bank on Tuesday downgraded its 2020 Philippine economic growth forecast to -6.9 percent from -1.9 percent which it said would slow down the country’s progress in poverty reduction over the past years.
In its “From Containment to Recovery – the World Bank’s October 2020 Economic Update for East Asia and the Pacific” report, the World Bank said the economy is projected to recover and grow by 5.3 percent in 2021 and 5.6 percent in 2022. “Economic growth averaged 6.6 percent from 2015 to 2019, resulting from prudent macro-fiscal management, significant investments in infrastructure and human capital, and favorable external conditions. Consequently, robust growth in household incomes reduced the national poverty rate from 23.5 percent in 2015 to 16.7 percent in 2018,” said the World Bank.
“The Covid-19 shock is now abruptly pushing the economy into recession and threatening these economic and social gains. The pandemic has triggered declines in remittances sent by Filipino overseas workers and job losses caused by strict containment measures,” it added.You have successfully joined our subscriber list.
More starving people on the way !