THE National Economic and Development Authority said that the Philippines is targeting a growth rate 6.5 to 7.5 percent in 2024.

According to National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan their target is in line with the government's goal to generate economic opportunities.

It also increases employment, raise per capita income, and elevate the Philippines to the status of an "upper middle income" country by 2025. 

Balisacan also noted that the said projection will be aided by the expected improvements in particular sectors such as infrastructure, agriculture, services, and manufacturing among others.

"This growth will be supported by low and manageable inflation, a labor force with access to more and better jobs, stronger fiscal position in the form of lower deficit and debt as a share of gross domestic product, and an increasingly dynamic, innovative and competitive economy," Balisacan said. 

Meanwhile, Balisacan said that the country's economy "did not really perform well in 2023" as he recognized the "magnitude of challenges" that the economy continues to face. 

"Our experience to the past year has led us to acknowledge the importance of reinforcing further our fiscal position to sustain rapid and inclusive growth in the coming years," he said. 

"We know the challenges, the world economy's still not as good as we wanted but we do think that there are growth opportunities...the government has passed a number of reforms and we are now operationalizing these reforms," he added. 

Balisacan said that the government has set a target growth rate of 6 to 7 percent for 2023. 

And while growth averaged 5.5 percent in the first three quarters, Balisacan said growth in the fourth quarter would need to expand at least 7.2 percent for the country to hit a 6 percent growth.