Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, NEDA regional director Arecio Casing Jr. and Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran (l-r) at the Regional Development Council meeting at L’ Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City on Thursday, October 13.*
National Economic and Development Authority OIC Regional Director Arecio Casing Jr. reported on Thursday, October 13, that the economy and employment rate of Western Visayas has improved, after a drop during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
However, for four consecutive weeks the prices of basic goods in Western Visayas have been higher than the national average as the inflation rate jumped to 7.4 percent in August 2022, Casing said in his State of the Region Address delivered during the Third Quarter Regional Development Council (RDC) meeting at L’ Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City.
He said from a negative 9.7 percent growth in 2020, the regional economic growth as measured by the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) in 2021 rebounded to 5.9 percent.
There has also been an improvement in the region’s labor indicators during the 2nd Quarter of 2022, Casing said.
The number of employed individuals grew by 2.04 percent while the Labor Force Participation Rate or the percentage of the total number of persons in the labor force to the total population shows a slight improvement of one percent, he also said.
Poverty Incidence in 2021 was 19 percent and is targeted to decrease at 9 to 12 percent in 2023, Casing added.
Western Viasayas’ fully immunized population was at 93.65 percent as of August 31, which contributed to the increased confidence of companies and employees in the opening or reopening of businesses, which improved the sector’s performance as a result of the tourism industry’s revival, he said.
He also reported that Western Visayas had 136.9 rice sufficiency ratio on average in its 1st quarter, and remains to be the 3rd largest rice producing region in the country
He said damage caused by Typhoon Odette to the region was P18 billion, and Typhoon Agaton’s initial damage has hit P270.3 million.
“I am confident that the people of Western Visayas, with the support of our newly elected officials together with the regional line agencies and the private sector, we will be able to sustain and even accelerate our growth further leaving no one behind.” Casing said.
Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez delivered the welcome remarks at the RDC meeting.*