News Analysis: UNDP notes uneven development in Phl despite growth

MANILA, Philippines  (Xinhua) - The 7.8 percent growth in Philippines' first quarter gross domestic product (GDP), the fastest in Asia, did not result in a more equitable development in the Philippines, according to the latest report of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

In its 2012-2013 Philippine Human Development Report (PHDR), which was released Monday, the UNDP said that development among the country's provinces remain largely unequal, with those in Mindanao lagging behind those in Luzon.

The report said that this disparity highlights the need to custom fit programs and the use of the national budget to address the needs of specific provinces.

Results of the PHDR-which measures each province's Human Development Index (HDI)-showed Benguet, north of Manila, as the province with the highest HDI of 0.85, followed by Batanes, at the country's northernmost tip, with 0.79, and nearby Rizal province with 0.73.

The top 10 in the PHDR include provinces south of Manila, such as Cavite with an index of 0.71 and Laguna with 0.69; and provinces to the north such as Bulacan with an index of 0.69, Bataan with 0.69, Nueva Vizcaya with 0.68, Ilocos Norte with 0.64, and Pampanga with 0.63.

The HDI is a summary measure of human development largely based on three factors-long and healthy life, knowledge, and decent standard of living. Ideally, the HDI should be close to 1.

The recent PHDR used the latest household data from 2009 and is not comparable to previous reports due to statistical nuances.  

The predominantly Muslim province of Sulu in the southernmost tip of the Philippines has the lowest HDI of 0.27, trailing Maguindanao with 0.3 and Tawi-Tawi with 0.31.

Sulu, Maguindanao and Tawi-Tawi, among the poorest provinces in the country, are to be included in the Bangsamoro, a juridical entity to be created as soon as the final peace agreement is signed between the Manila government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Metro Manila-which was excluded from the rankings-had an HDI of 0.81, while the Philippines as a whole notched 0.65.

During the launching of the PHDR, Toby Melissa Monsod, University of the Philippines economist and Human Development Network coordinator, said that the aim of economic integration "is to reduce the distance of people, especially the poor, to economic opportunities wherever they may be found."

Monsod said that there is a need to "restructure" national government agencies toward integration efforts at local levels and subjecting funds to provincial government control.

Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Austere Panadero agreed that there is a need for a review of the Local Government Code where the distribution of tax collections from the national to the local level is based.  

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan admitted that while the government is doing quite well on the economic front, it is not doing so well in the other sectors like development.

"The updating of the PDP (Philippines Development Plan) is an opportunity for us... to enable us to push for a more inclusive development. For growth to be inclusive, we need to put into our strategy spatial projection to our plan," Balisacan said.

Government data show that despite the gains, the ratio of poor Filipinos to the overall population was basically unchanged since 2009 while the ratio of Filipinos without work rose in April.

Balisacan and other members of the Aquino economic team have vowed to focus on creating jobs at the local level to address poverty.

Meanwhile, the Movement for Good Governance (MGG) said that the Aquino administration has made significant economic gains but failed to alleviate poverty, generate employment and improve infrastructure.  

The MGG report also noted a benign rise in consumer prices, which fell within the government's 3 to 5 percent target.