The administration of President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. is set to establish an Economic Development Group tasked to address the country's economic concerns, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said on Tuesday.
In a press briefing, Diokno said he will be the head of the group that is composed of various government agencies including the Presidential Management Staff (PMS), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Agriculture (DA), and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
Also part of the group is the Department of Transporation (DOTr), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and Department of Labor and Employment (DOE).
Meanwhile, the co-chairman of the Economic Development Group is the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).
According to Diokno, they have identified several laws that need to be passed to lower the prices of goods and services.
"For example, 'yung New Agrarian Imansipansion Act, that's number one. I understand that this has [been] passed [in] the House [of Representatives] at napasa na rin ito sa Senado. Ang pakay ng batas na ito is condonation of agrarian reform beneficiaries, mga worth Php 58 billion," he said.
The said act will cover the loans of small farmers, Diokno added.
The Finance Secretary said the group will also propose the passing of the National Land Use Act.
"Ang mangyayari dio, hindi muna co-convert 'yung mga agricultural land into housing, mga ganon. So naka-set aside talaga 'yung agriculture land, so they will not be converted for another use," he explained.
Apart from this, the Finance Secretary said they will also propose a Livestock development and competitiveness bill as well as the Amendment of the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporations.
Diokno noted that inflation will not ease easily, but the finance department predicts that this will go down by four percent by October this year.
"By 2024, ang average inflation will be 3.1 [percent]," he added.
The country's inflation rate for the month of February eased to 8.6 percent, the first time in six months, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Tuesday.
