Finance Secretary and Asian Development Bank (ADB) governor for the Philippines Ralph Recto welcomed the bank’s new country partnership strategy, which reflects its longstanding friendship and deep understanding of the country’s development needs.
“I thank the ADB, who has always been a true friend of the Philippines, for developing this very well-tailored country partnership strategy with us. This not only reflects the Bank’s commitment to the Philippines but is also a testament to their deep understanding of our development needs in order to achieve our ultimate goal of lifting 8 million more Filipinos out of poverty by the end of President Marcos Jr.’s term,” he said.
“It was the Marcos, Jr. administration’s priorities that drove the ADB’s development assistance agenda for the Philippines. It is perfectly aligned with the goals laid out in the Philippine Development Plan 2023 to 2028,” Recto said.
The ceremonial turnover of the ADB’s Philippines country partnership strategy (CPS) for 2024 to 2029 was led by ADB president Masatsugu Asakawa and President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. on Sept. 12, 2024 at Malacañang.
The event was witnessed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, Recto and National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan.
The ADB CPS defines the Bank’s medium-term development strategy and operational program for the Philippines for the years 2024 to 2029.
It aims to steer the Philippines’ development path towards greater inclusion, climate resilience, and competitiveness, by strengthening human development; boosting economic competitiveness and quality infrastructure; and sustaining natural resources and ecosystems; and strengthening disaster resilience.
It was developed through rigorous consultations with the NEDA as the lead implementing agency as well as the Department of Finance (DOF), other government agencies, the private sector and civil society.
The ADB board approved the CPS on Sept. 4, 2024 and would be operationalized through the annual conduct of the Country Programming Mission.
“Thanks to the ADB, we are not just talking about progress––we are now on the path to achieving it. Your contributions have turned hope into reality and made a profound difference in countless lives here in the Philippines. For that, we are very grateful,” President Marcos said.
“I want to reaffirm ADB’s strong commitment to supporting the Philippines’ economic and social transformation through our new Country Partnership Strategy. Building on our shared successes, I am confident that together we will achieve remarkable progress in this new chapter of our partnership,” Asakawa said.
The ADB is the Philippines’ second largest source and the top multilateral development partner among 19 official development assistance (ODA) providers in the country. As of June 2024, the bank’s total net commitment to the Philippines amounts to $8.84 billion, consisting of 26 ODA loans and 29 grants.
