Almost all provinces and highly-urbanized cities (HUCs) in the Philippines already recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2023 in terms of gross domestic product, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Based on the results of the 2023 Provincial Product Accounts, all economies from Visayas and Mindanao already have GDP levels exceeding pre-pandemic levels in 2023, while three economies in Luzon are still recovering.
“When combined, a total of 112 out of 115 economies in the Philippines already have GDP levels exceeding pre-pandemic levels in 2023, an improvement from the 92 economies in 2022 and 28 economies in 2021,” the PSA said.
The results of the 2023 PPA also noted that five economies, including one from Luzon and four from Mindanao, have not experienced a decline in GDP even during the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The PSA released for the first time the results of all the PPA of all regions in the Philippines, covering 82 provinces and 33 HUCs from Nov. 9 to Dec. 11, 2024. The PPA is a mechanism to compile the GDP) at the subregional level.
The special release highlights the economic performance of all provinces and HUCs in the Philippines by major island group.
The country’s GDP posted an annual growth of 5.5 percent in 2023, expanding its value to P21.05 trillion from 2022. Among the major island groups, Luzon accounted for more than two-thirds or 69.0 percent of the national GDP in 2023. Meanwhile, Mindanao and Visayas shared 17.1 percent and 13.9 percent, respectively.
All major island groups experienced growth in GDP in 2023, with Visayas registering the fastest annual growth rate of 7.1 percent. This was the third consecutive year that all major island groups posted growths since the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the PPA said.
The PSA said it would institutionalize the PPA in all regions this year.