12 October 2016

Vice President Leonor G. Robredo

Keynote Speech, 42nd Philippine Business Conference & Expo
Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry
I am truly honored to be with you this morning, as you come together once more to showcase Filipino
innovation and ingenuity.
But thats not the only thing on display today. We are also looking at the great potential for progress
and prosperity in this nation, thanks to the efforts of the PCCI.
Mabuhay po kayong lahat!
Im sure youre all excited about what this conference has in store for you. Over the course of this day
and the next, there will be many venues for you to discuss industry issuesespecially in the context of
the countrys political and investment climate.
You will gain valuable insights on trade, economic policy, and governance, thanks to plenaries and
breakout sessions ahead. Best of all, you will have so many opportunities to network. There will be
ample time for you to meet each other, and to find out how you can work together to boost the Philippine
market and expand the economy.
Working together, after all, will be key in bringing further growth to the country. Already, the
Philippines enjoys a solid reputation as a rising economic force in the region.
In 2015, Bloomberg called us Southeast Asias strong mana big departure from our old reputation
as The Sick Man of Asia. We are now one of the fastest, if not the fastest-growing economy in Asia
today.
Just two months ago, the countrys GDP growth was at 7 percent, the highest in the region. Investors
and analysts, here and abroad, may be divided about our prospects for growth over the medium and
long-term but our macroeconomic fundamentals are solid. At the same time, the new administration is
fearlessly moving forward with new reforms, like tax reform and building infrastructure that is so
crucial to our growth.
Of course, we still have some huge challenges to address. As impressive as our growth numbers are,
millions of Filipinos are still trapped in poverty. True, our economic performance has been impressive.
But everyday experience shows us that we still have a long way to go. Here in Metro Manila, we find
abundant proof of crippling poverty.
On our way to work and back home, in the papers and on television, the face of poverty looks straight
at us. Its not looking away anytime soon.
Since I assumed office as Vice President of the Republic, my office and I have made it a point to
recognize povertys face.

We are returning its gaze. Because thats what we need to do if we want true progress for this country:
we need to confront poverty head-on and find long-term solutions that will reduce and eventually
eradicate it.
A lot of people are curious about what my plans are. They want to know if I have actual solutions for
poverty and inclusive growth. Heres the good news: we do have some very sound ideas to combat
poverty in the Philippines.
In my first 100 days of office, my team and I went to several cities and municipalities to meet our
poorest communities. We opened up spaces for dialogue with the poor so we could fight poverty with
them as our partners.
We also sat down with more than 50 groups from the public and private sector, as well as development
partners, members of the academe, and peoples organizations.
The fruit of our discourse is this: the Antipoverty Framework of the Office of the Vice President. This
is our five-point strategy to fight poverty at its complex root. We have five thematic priorities: universal
health care, food security and nutrition, secondary education, rural development, and women
empowerment.
Today, Id like to pay special attention to the third and fourth priority areas in my framework: quality
secondary education through skills-based training, and rural development for economic growth.
Over the next six years, my office and I want to work with various sectorsincluding government, the
private sector, and civil societyto connect our youth to the right income-making opportunities. Our
people are such a large base of talent and ability, and all we need to do is link them to the right places.
To make the most of the skills of our young workforce, we plan to connect them to fast-growing
industries that will spur economic growth. These include local tourism and manufacturing, as well as
agri-business and fisheries development. These sectors are low-hanging fruits: we have the resources
and the capacity to expand them.
By linking our youth to the right livelihood sectorsand by arming them with the proper skillswe
can induce innovation in those industries, most of which are in the countryside.
This is where our other priority area comes in: rural development. Most of the Philippine countryside
is underdeveloped, and the communities that live there have suffered poverty for generations.
Together with you, the Philippine business community, we want to engage our smallholder farmers in
developing high-value supply chains. Too often, our small-scale farmers lose out to larger
manufacturers and conglomerates.
Thats usually because they have limited access to training opportunities or the appropriate technology
to grow their enterprises.
What is crucial in our agenda of rural development is nurturing a sense of entrepreneurship among our
farmers.

Showing them how they can be more competitive, so that community-based enterprises and locally
made products can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with bigger brands.
Many of you here are already doing that, and this expo is evidence of it. Your businesses have evolved
from small outfits into profitable enterprises. Wed like to see the same thing happen to our smallholder
farmers, fisherfolk, and indigenous groups, and give them the proper tools to do business with big
companies and other high-value markets.
In this manner, our rural communities can play a role in driving the Philippine economy, so it is less
consumption-based. After all, if we want to sustain the trajectory of our growth, the fuel of our economy
should be in manufacturing and investments.
As you might know, the Office of the Vice President is not an implementing agency. Instead, our
mandate is to craft policies and ensure their proper implementation. To make the most of our role, we
are positioning ourselves as the governments primary convenor of change.
My office will be the bridge between the poor and multisectoral stakeholdersincluding you!so that
we can finally bring inclusive growth to the Philippines.
Already, we have identified possible partners in our campaign to develop the countryside and bring
growth opportunities for shareholders. The Jollibee Group Foundation and Nestle Philippines, for
example, are potential collaborators.
PRISM, Philamlife and Phinma have commit to explore partnership for construction of a state college
in Lubang, Occidental Mindoro.
Last weekend, a Mangyan community in Pola, Oriental Mindoro, experienced electricity for the first
time after a donor gave solar kits. During the Anti-Poverty Summit last Monday, Mayor Jay Gonzales
of Lambunao, Iloilo was moved to tears when a donor committed 73 play gardens for each of the
barangays in his town.
This has been his biggest dream. There are many more dreams we can fulfill by doing just a little bit
more, every day.
I invite you to join me and this government as we work towards a bright future for our country. In you,
I see men and women who have already contributed so much to make the Philippines a better place.
You are proof that if we put our hearts and minds to it, we can rise from the humblest beginnings to
achieve the success we deserve.
You are proof of how innovative Filipinos are and how strong our entrepreneurial spirit is.
Lets make your story the story of the Filipino people. Lets make that happen together.
Thank you very much, at muli, mabuhay po kayong lahat!