The Philippines finds itself in Southeast Asia, in a wondrous archipelago of seven thousand islands in the Western Pacific. It began as a Spanish colony but was ceded first by the Spanish to the Americans, and subsequently by the Americans to the Japanese; it eventually achieved independence on July 4 1946 following World War II. Its rich colonial past has given it a unique blend of cultures and has promoted a successful fusion of the cultures, religions, and societal values from the East and West. The Philippines prides itself on the gregarious and helpful nature of its people, and their attitude of “hospitality” toward one another as well as foreigners. Since its emergence as an independent nation in the 1940s, it has ridden its strengths to achieve economic success; however, it has also faced many setbacks from an economic perspective as a direct consequence of internal and external factors.
[...] A recurring theme in the trends of the Filipino economy has been political corruption and poor leadership. The high levels of corruption indicate that there is a large underground economy that is not accounted for in the calculation of GDP. Ferdinand Marcos's rule left the economy in a lurch and Corazon Aquino's administration further dampened economic growth. Fidel Ramos's reign, however, posted higher GDP growth rates and stimulated further economic growth. The strong and sustained economic growth the Philippines was experiencing in the 1990s took a major blow when the Asian Currency Crisis of 1997 came by. [...]
[...] After the Asian Currency Crisis, the economy has rebounded strongly and exceeded its pre-Asian Currency Crisis levels. The GDP per capita has risen from US$3600 in 2000 to US$5700 in 2007. The GDP growth rate has been steadily rising and reached a high of in 2007. The peso has also been strengthening in value, and it has been trading at PHP 41 level to a US dollar in 2007 making it Asia's best performing currency. The stock market also reached a record high in June 2007. [...]
[...] Asia Falling: Making Sense of the Asian Currency Crisis and Its Aftermath. New York: McGraw Hill "BRIC Nations." Investopedia. Forbes Media Company Apr < http:>. Philippines Terrorism: the Role of Militant Islamic Converts. International Crisis Group. Washington DC World Economic Outlook 2007. International Monetary Fund. Washington DC "Philippines." Penn World Tables. University of Pennsylvania Apr < http:>. "World Population Datasheet 2007." Scribd Scribd. Boston Apr < http:>. "Philippines." World Development Indicators. [...]
[...] Lying in the Western Pacific, the Philippines is geographically prone to typhoons and two in 2006 had a devastating impact, especially on the agricultural sector, and resulted in growth of only Currently, the nation is also still highly dependent on remittance from overseas workers, of which there are many. There are extremely high poverty levels in the country with 30% of the population below the poverty line in 2007—this has been a pressing issue for the government as the unequal distribution of wealth is creating a great divide between the rich and the poor resulting in social and ultimately, economic problems. [...]
[...] The Philippines' economy is also being held captive by Islamic terrorism within its borders, and it has to break free of this vice-like grip that terrorism is placing on its economy before it can truly expand its growth potential. Fortunately, the Philippines is working within its best interests to tackle all these problems so it will only be a matter of time before the Philippines finds itself amongst the world's elite economies. Works Cited Asian Development Bank & Philippines. Asian Development Bank. [...]
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