The Inquirer columnist Cielito Habito suggests the economy may—at long last—be entering a period of inclusive growth (The Daily Inquirer, August 8, 2017) . Nor is growth coming from increasing demand for our overseas contract workers. I wish I could share unequivocally in Habito’s optimism; but it seems to me much too early to tell if growth will persist. For the core poor, even periods of economic upturn may only mean being left further behind—since they’re unable to take up the jobs that growth opens up. Habito himself sees our best hope for inclusive growth in our nurture of agriculture and agri-business.

Source: Manila Times August 19, 2017 16:30 UTC