President Marcos’ chief economic manager is confident that the Philippines can maintain its trajectory toward achieving upper-middle income status by 2025 despite World Bank’s recent increase in the threshold. Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said the country is on track to meet the World Bank’s new minimum gross national income (GNI) per capita threshold of $4,466 to be recognized as an upper-middle income economy. “Note that the World Bank recently adjusted the guidepost,” Diokno told Manila Bulletin on Sunday, July 2. Last June 30, the World Bank revised its classification threshold, expanding the range of GNI per capita required for a country to be classified as an upper-middle-income economy. For fiscal year 2024, World Bank’s new range now spans from $4,466 to $13,845, higher than the previous band of $4,256 to $13,205. Asked if the new threshold is achievable, Diokno said “yes, by the end 2025. That’s our goal.” In 2022, the Philippines’ GNI per capita increased by 11.2 percent to $3,950 from $3,550 in the previous year. GNI per capita—used to assess economic well-being and living standards—is a measure of the average earning per person in a country, representing the total income divided by the population. The Covid-19 crisis, however, caused a significant decline in the Philippines' per capita income in 2020, plummeting from $3,640 in 2019. But the country recovered, bouncing back from a low point of $3,350 during the peak of the pandemic to $3,550 in 2021. Furthermore, it managed to surpass the pre-pandemic level by the end of last year. Despite the Philippines' advancements in GNI per capita after the pandemic, it has been surpassed by its neighboring country, Vietnam. As of the end of 2022, Vietnam has already outpaced the Philippines with a GNI per capita of $4,010. Prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Philippines held a 13 percent lead over Vietnam in terms of per capita income, with $3,770 compared to Vietnam's $3,340. Sought for comment about Vietnam’s lead, Diokno said assessing President Marcos’ performance in raising the income of Filipinos should be conducted upon the conclusion of his administration. “Every administration has a distinct start and finish. Consequently, it is imperative to hold the PBBM [President Bong Bong Marcos] administration accountable for its actions or inactions throughout its tenure,” Diokno said. “This is a fundamental aspect of our system, characterized by a fixed term, transparency, and accountability. It grants citizens the opportunity to evaluate the performance of their political leaders on a regular basis, which is a valuable attribute of our democratic process,” he added.