PH
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Wednesday urged the private sector to help policymakers build the country’s “new economy,” calling their participation “crucial.”
During a roundtable with a financial media organization, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno
told the sector that its “role in helping the Philippines achieve the desired new economy is equally crucial.”
He encouraged banks to fulfill their role in financial intermediation by taking advantage of the central bank’s regulatory relief measures by offering and communicating the least burdensome options to clients, especially micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
“Lending to vulnerable sectors, led by MSMEs, will go a long way in helping speed up the economy’s recovery,” Diokno said.
The Bangko Sentral earlier allowed new loans to MSMEs to be part of banks’ compliance with the reserve requirement. It also reduced risk weights for MSME loans from 75 percent to 50 percent and assigned zero-risk weight to loans guaranteed by government entities.
The BSP chief also urged those in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector and the broader business community to invest in digitalization, which would help the Philippines reach a higher level of development.
“Under the new economy, strong ICT services even in remote areas of the country are a prerequisite to an inclusive economy,” he said.
The private sector must also continue to invest in the government’s Build, Build, Build infrastructure program and other job-generating initiatives, Diokno added.
According to him, these investments would be indispensable for the economy’s solid recovery.
Diokno noted that the economy was expected to bounce back with a growth of 7.1 to 8.1 percent in 2021 from the projected 2.0- to 3.4-percent contraction this year.
“We must not let this once-in-a-lifetime crisis go to waste. We must emerge from this pandemic better, stronger and more agile than before,” he said.