Economic Policy Monitor 2014: Effective Regulations for Sustainable Growth

The DPRM theme, “Tamang Regulasyon para sa Patuloy na Pag-ahon” (Effective Regulations for Sustainable Growth), is explained in this fifth issue of the PIDS Economic Policy Monitor.  The theme chapter (Chapter 3) examines the case for developing a sound and efficient regulatory management system for the Philippines. With the impending integration of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member-states, the need to address the factors that continue to bring down the Philippines’ competitiveness and weaken the efforts toward greater inclusiveness becomes more imminent. Regulatory burdens are one of those factors. They restrain competition, innovation, and productivity, which can snowball into causing a drop in business confidence, neglect of general welfare, build-up of corruption, and, ultimately, loss of public faith in governance. Reducing regulatory burdens is important economically, socially, and politically. Moreover, improving regulatory quality and coherence is imperative for the country to take advantage of increased trade and investment under ASEAN integration—gains that the country needs to achieve sustainable and inclusive growth.