To better prepare for natural disasters and their economic impact, the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) emphasized the need to address corruption and prioritize effective project implementation, such as flood control measures to mitigate the country’s worsening flooding problems.

Speaking at the 50th anniversary celebration of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) on Friday, Oct. 10, DEPDev Undersecretary Rosemarie G. Edillon said that the focus should be on finding concrete strategies to solve the corruption problem.

Edillon said that corruption should be addressed in a robust manner, emphasizing that there should be no whitewashing and that attention should be given to areas that genuinely need flood control projects.

She also underscored the need to change the narrative on corruption, noting that the public became aware of the issue because President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. brought it to light.

However, ECOP vice president and skills and education committee chair Antonio L. Sayo said the recent scandal involving flood control projects runs counter to the government’s efforts to promote the ease of doing business.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) scandal threatens the reliable, corruption-free environment businesses expect, which ideally should be untouchable, according to the ECOP official.

“Ease of doing business is supposed to be sacrosanct,” he added.

He stressed that certain institutions need direct reforms, highlighting that agencies like the DPWH, the Bureau of Customs (BOC), and other government bodies must be systematically cleaned up, including cleaning up in leadership.

Sayo also emphasized that the issue reflects how governance is crucial to attracting foreign direct investments (FDIs).

He said that the country’s fundamentals, stock market, and economic growth are performing well, but FDIs have shown signs of being affected.

Sayo also pointed out that anything undermining a stable business environment is harmful to FDIs, noting that ECOP, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), and other organizations have drafted a policy paper calling for action and accountability.

Meanwhile, Edillon said that the earthquakes occurring in the country are a weakness for national income accounting (NIA).

“In NIA, if there are damaged factories, that actually means that there will not be any production that could happen until that factory is restored,” Edillon explained, noting that it will not affect gross domestic product (GDP).

“If there are damaged churches, then no, it will not affect GDP. If there are damaged bridges, like in the case of Cebu, again, it depends on the traffic. So, if the traffic is [along] a very strategic thoroughfare, then there will be [impact on GDP]. But if not, then no,” she added.

However, she noted that once reconstruction begins, it will add to GDP.

“For the third quarter, we still do not have the damage and loss assessment. I think because there are still aftershocks that are happening, we have to wait until things settle down before we do an assessment of the damage and loss,” Edillon said.

Regarding the recent calamities, Edillon said the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has been asked to make an inventory of its early warning instruments, noting that these may need to be updated, upgraded, and modernized.

“The good news is, we just heard from the Philippine Space Agency that this time, the cycle of orbiting our satellites will be faster because they were provided more resources to subscribe to more satellites,” Edillon said, adding that the next step is to make use of satellite imagery for weather and climate forecasting and other scenarios.

“So, for the preparation, it’s really the technology. We need to acquire the technology, and we have to learn how to use them. And then, of course, coming up with the models so we can be better at forecasting this,” she added.