House Speaker Martin Romualdez is delighted by the statement made by the visiting group from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the expected growth of the Philippines’ economy in the last part of 2023 and the next year.

The Philippines recorded 4.3% growth in the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of the year, leading to 5.3% GDP growth in the first part of 2023, which is lower than economic managers’ expected 6.7% growth.

In the meeting with Romualdez, the IMF team led by Mission Chief Jay Pereis said they expected that the Philippines’ economic growth would further accelerate in the last part of the year, and they also expected faster development of the country’s economy in 2024.

According to Romualdez, the positive outlook from the IMF will serve as motivation for them to exert more effort to bolster the Philippine economy.

Meanwhile, the IMF team recommended the Marcos administration strengthen the knowledge of the citizens in the use of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly in the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, where the country has a competitive advantage.