PHILIPPINES EYES STRONG PARTNERSHIP WITH WORLD BANK

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said the Philippines is looking forward to a strengthened partnership with the World Bank (WB) in boosting the country’s fiscal sustainability as the government explores innovative ways to protect its financial health against future climate crises and other adversities.

Acknowledging the urgency of implementing stronger adaptation measures to help Filipinos survive and thrive amid the climate crisis, Secretary Dominguez said the government will also strengthen the integration of disaster risk mitigation in its fiscal strategy.

He said the COVID-19 outbreak, along with the eruption of Taal volcano in January and the powerful storms that struck one after the other in November, has shown that the climate crisis remains a formidable threat to the Philippines’ gradual recovery from the prolonged pandemic.

“We are aware that more of these climate-related challenges will come, as they are symptoms of a long-term crisis that we have yet to address. This difficult year threw a harsh light on our vulnerabilities, but it has steeled our determination to proactively manage our risks and make our communities more resilient,” Secretary Dominguez said in his pre-recorded keynote speech in this morning’s online launching of the WB’s December 2020 edition of its Philippine Economic Update.

Mr. Ndiamé Diop, the WB Country Director for Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand, led the online launching that was attended by over 200 representatives from the public and private sectors.

Secretary Dominguez lauded the WB for being a “staunch partner of the Philippines in all of its disaster response efforts” by providing access to appropriate financing products, such as the country’s first-ever Insurance-Linked Security or Catastrophe (CAT) bond issued last year.

The WB is also currently supporting the Philippines through its 3rd Disaster Risk Management Policy Loan (DRMPL), which is a financing package that aims to strengthen the country’s capacity to prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters, including health emergencies like the coronavirus pandemic.

This WB policy loan support follows two earlier Risk Management Development Policy Loans (RMDPL) with a Catastrophe-Deferred Drawdown Option, which provided the government with immediate liquidity to help fund its disaster relief and reconstruction efforts. The event also included a forum on building a resilient recovery plan for the Philippines through effective disaster risk management and financing.

“We look forward to a strengthened partnership with the World Bank as we boost our competitiveness and financial sustainability while enhancing resiliency,” Secretary Dominguez said.