63rd PES Annual Meeting and Conference

An Economy that Works for People: Sustaining Economic Progress Amidst Global Polycrisis

7 November 2025 | Makati Shangri-La, Makati City, Philippines

The past few years have witnessed dramatic political upheavals that seem rooted, at least in part, in a deep sense of economic malaise. Even as the world has recovered from the epochal shock of the COVID-19 pandemic, longstanding discontent has re-emerged, and new uncertainties have cast a pall. Right-wing leaders have taken over governments in the Americas and Europe, while war continues in Ukraine, Palestine, and Sudan. Tensions continue in the West Philippine Sea and over Taiwan, even as the new President of the United States seems bent on disrupting global trade and American foreign aid. Economic disruption is also ripping through markets as advances in artificial intelligence threaten established employment structures. Finally, climate change continues to surprise in its speed and intensity, as wildfires become more frequent and widespread, and severe cyclones as well as El Niño episodes recur more often.

On the domestic front though has brought recent welcome news. Economic growth remains resilient, and unemployment continues to fall, dipping to 4.4% average for 2023, and further down to 3.25% by November 2024. Inflation softened to 3.2% in 2024, from an above-target rate of 6% in 2023. Poverty incidence declined to 15.5% in 2023, down from 18.1% post-pandemic. Beneath these figures, however, lies a dark underbelly. Past runups in the price of basic goods, especially rice, have spawned an affordability crisis, reflecting in the perceptions of people (and approval ratings of high government officials). Self-rated hunger last December 2024 was 25.9%, even higher than the pandemic quarter of July 2020 at 20.9%. Self-rated poverty reached 63%, the highest level since November 2003. The visible underemployment rate averaged 6.9% in 2024, highlighting the lack of decent jobs in the country. The low quality of jobs and the sense of hardship of daily life render hollow the seemingly favorable economic numbers. Even GDP growth weakened to a 5.6% average under the new administration is somewhat worrisome against the decadal average of 6.4%, pre-pandemic. Finally, fiscal policy faced pronounced difficulties as the government deficit remained at 5.1% of GDP, and the debt-to-GDP rose to 60.7%, far above the 34.1% before the pandemic, even a public outcry against fund misallocation led to delays in budget signing by the President.

What strategies are needed to meet these challenges? What kinds of industrial policies should be put in place – should the government engage in the “new industrial policy”, or adopt a more radical laissez-faire approach as in Argentina? How can growth be made inclusive, decent work become more accessible, and daily necessities more affordable? Within the context of a democracy, how can the State be reformed such that it ensures a functioning economy that works for people?

For inquiries:

The PES Secretariat

c/o Philippine Social Science Council
Tel No.: (632) 8-929-2671
Email: pes.eaea@gmail.com