The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) has called for the enactment of a proposal to establish the Department of Water Resources in order to resolve the duplicative roles in water agencies.

“Currently, there are over 30 agencies with overlapping functions over the country's water resources, which leads to uncoordinated planning efforts and inconsistent implementation of policies that adversely affect the country's water supply,” the NEDA said in a statement.

“This state of affairs affects about 12.40 million people who obtain water from unsafe sources, with some areas needing more water service providers,” it added.

House Bill 9663 or the National Water Resources Act, which is one of President Marcos’ priority bills, aims to establish a water agency that will be responsible for the mapping and management of the ownership of all water resources in the country.

The lower house already approved the said bill on final reading in December last year, while its counterpart bill has been pending in the Senate committee.

NEDA also reiterated its support for the passage of the Economy, Planning, and Development Bill or Senate Bill 2483 – the latest iteration of the NEDA Bill.

This measure aims to institutionalize the NEDA into the Department of Economic Planning and Development to strengthen the government's ability to formulate and coordinate medium- and long-term economic and development roadmaps aligned with the AmBisyon Natin 2040, the country's long-term vision.

In addition, it seeks to enhance the coherence of national and sub-national policies, plans, and programs towards the optimal use of financial resources through the country's public investment program.

“Sa NEDA, sentro ang tao sa plano (At NEDA, our plans are people-centered). The passage of the NEDA Bill will allow us to better leverage our expertise in people-centered development planning across all national and local sectors and ensure that all Filipinos feel the benefits of such exercises," NEDA Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said.

Further, the economic group pushed for the proposed Open Access in Data Transmission Act as part of the Common Legislative Agenda of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) chaired by President Marcos.

This bill aims to narrow the digital divide in the country by encouraging the development of data transmission infrastructure and removing barriers to competition in data transmission services, which will enable the full potential of e-commerce.

It also seeks to remove the requirement of a legislative franchise for players seeking to build their networks in the telecommunications sector, rationalize access and use of the country's scarce spectrum resources, and make it easier for entrants to provide better services for consumers at more competitive prices.

NEDA also stated that it joins the economic team in supporting the passage of critical fiscal reforms ensuring the speedy rollout of improvements to the country's tax administration systems.

These bills include the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform and the VAT on Digital Services.

Meanwhile, the proposed Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy aims to improve tax administration for enterprises, encourage investments, and promote the ease of business in the country.

"It has been one year since the launch of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028. While we saw some of our headline indicators improve, much remains to be done,” Balisacan said

“To ensure that we remain on track to meet our goals by 2028, and in anticipation of future challenges and scenarios, we must pass key legislative measures aimed at strengthening the country's economic governance and addressing the structural weaknesses of our production sectors," he added.