Economic managers expressed gratitude to Congress for supporting the Marcos administration's medium-term fiscal blueprint that aims to steer the economy back to its high-growth trajectory.

Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno and Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman said on Tuesday, Sept. 20, that Congress’ swift action on the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF) recognized President Marcos’ socioeconomic agenda.

“We thank Congress for recognizing the importance of the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework in the attainment of our socioeconomic agenda,” Diokno said in a statement.

“The adoption of this resolution will ensure the prioritization and alignment of key legislation that will help steer the economy back to its high-growth path,” he added.

For her part, Pangandaman said "it is encouraging to see that Congress is united with the administration in our economic objectives for the nation”

“We commend Congress on the adoption by both the Senate and the House of Representatives of their respective resolutions backing the MTFF," she said in a separate statement.

The Senate and the House of Representatives sponsored their respective resolutions backing the 2022-2028 MTFF.

House Concurrent Resolution 2 was adopted last August while Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 was adopted on Sept. 12, whose version was later adopted by the lower chamber.

The MTFF is a comprehensive plan that aims to sustain the country’s strong post-pandemic economic recovery and support accelerated growth. It also serves as a roadmap for developing the government’s annual National Expenditure Program (NEP).

The proposed 2023 NEP is currently being deliberated in Congress.

Under the MTFF, the government is targeting faster economic growth at 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022 and 6.5 percent to 8.0 percent of GDP annually from 2023 to 2028.

It envisions the Philippines as an upper-middle income economy, with a poverty rate reduced to nine percent by 2028.

MTFF strategies are aimed at reducing both the National Government (NG) debt-to-GDP ratio to less than 60 percent by 2025; and the NG deficit-to-GDP ratio to 3 percent by 2028.

“The targets set in the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework will guide the legislative agenda of the government. The express support of Congress ensures the alignment of measures that will help the country sustain growth and achieve upper-middle income status,” Diokno said.

In the House of Representatives, the resolution was sponsored by Committee on Appropriations Vice Chair Stella Luz Quimbo. She underscored the importance of Congressional initiatives being aligned with the economic recovery programs of the National Government.

Meanwhile, Senate Finance Committee Chair Juan Edgardo Angara, who sponsored the Senate Concurrent Resolution on the MTFF, pointed out that it was the first time in his nearly 20 years as a legislator that a fiscal framework was laid down to guide the nation's economic development.