Economy now fully open to outside investment. Agricultural productivity rising. Remittances from Filipinos working overseas are estimated at $2 billion. Well-equipped ex-US military installations with economic potential, such as Subic Bay.
Weaknesses
Power failures limit scope for expansion. Rudimentary infrastructure, especially transportation. Low domestic savings rates make Philippines reliant on foreign finance. $30-billion debt.
Profile
In the 1950s, the Philippines was one of the strongest economies in Asia. Since then, it has fallen behind once much poorer nations such as Thailand, Malaysia and South Korea. Around 50% of the population live on the poverty line. It is this poverty that has fueled many of the secessionist movements that have threatened the stability of successive governments.
The economy is undergoing slow reform. The Ramos administration aims to emulate the success of the other Southeast Asian NICs. Backed by the IMF, it is deregulating the economy to encourage foreign investment. It is also trying to trim the power of some of the large privately run monopolies; a few families still control a major part of the economy. Long-term goals are to raise economic growth to double figures by 1998, raise the per capita income to $1,000, as opposed to the current average of $750, and to reduce those affected by poverty to 30% of the population.
