1. ASEM Financial Crisis Response Fund Review Meeting
PHILIPPINES: Implementation Progress, Portfolio Performance and Results
28 June 2006
Presented by:
Director Ma. Edita Z. Tan
Department of Finance

2. PHILIPPINE CONTEXT Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan
Assumes that:
Improved governance is critical to poverty alleviation
Priorities of the government:
Raising fiscal revenues to achieve fiscal consolidation
Improving expenditure management and public procurement
Managing fiscal risks pertaining to contingent liabilities
Strengthening and deepening the private sector
Rebuilding investor confidence through improvements in Corporate Governance

3. FOCAL AREAS OF THE ASEM TF 2
Financial Sector
Social Sector
Governance Reform
Pension Reform
Strengthening Capacity for Bank Supervision
Closing the Productivity Gap
Poverty Monitoring and Analysis
Strengthening Reforms in the Urban Shelter Programs for the Poor
Knowledge Enhancement of Key Issues in Corporate Governance
Strengthening Institutions for Sustainable Poverty Reduction and Good Governance
Strengthening the Capacity of Procurement Institutions for Sustainable Good Governance
Strengthening the Office of the Ombudsman for Good Governance

4. FOCAL AREAS OF THE ASEM TF 2
Relevant Figures:
Total Grant Amount = US$ 5.22 Million
No. of Programs = 9
No. of Projects = 12
Completed = 5
On-Going = 6
Cancelled = 1

5. PERFORMANCE OF COMPLETED
ASEM TF PROJECTS

6. OUTCOMES OF COMPLETED PROJECTS
Closing the Productivity Gap (TF051862)
Workshops were held with key stakeholders to build consensus around recommended policy approaches to strengthen productivity growth
Knowledge Enhancement of Key Issues in Corporate Governance (TF050955)
A training program and manual on corporate governance was developed
Strengthening Capacity for Bank Supervision (TF053181)
Supported Central Bank’s efforts to align the IT and risk management policies with international best practices
Pension Reform (Recipient-Executed) (TF052349)
Provided a clearer perspective on the financial and actuarial position of the military pension system

7. STATUS OF ACTIVE ASEM TRUST FUNDS

8. DISBURSEMENT RATE (2004 TO 2006)
Despite a slow start, disbursement rate picked up in 2006
Disbursed amount has now reached approx. 60% as of to date.

9. PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED Design Problems:
Overly complex project with multiple stakeholders
Fragmented/small consultancies
Solution:
Regular meetings with the ICSC helped improve coordination and address bottlenecks
Lumping together small assignments into one TA contract

10. PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED (2)
Implementation Issues:
Difficulty in providing direct government counterpart funding requirement
Problems with external project monitoring unit
Solution:
DOF realigned its budget to accommodate the counterpart costs
Dedicated in-house staff reporting directly to the Undersecretary

11. MOVING FORWARD Possible Areas of Cooperation (High Priority):
Economic and Financial Cooperation
Regional macro-economic monitoring
Regulatory economics
Social Cooperation
Social protection for the informal sector and other vulnerable groups
Environmental Cooperation
Energy efficiency

12. ASEM Financial Crisis Response Fund Review Meeting
PHILIPPINES: Implementation Progress, Portfolio Performance and Results
THANK YOU!