Manila (Philippine Daily Inquirer\/ANN) - The government's anti-corruption efforts helped push the Philippines' global ranking in terms of economic freedom by 10 notches to 97th among 177 countries and territories. <\/p>\n
This was according to the editors of the 2013 Index of Economic Freedom, jointly released by Washington D.C.-based The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal. <\/p>\n
Based on the latest annual index, the 19th since it first came out in 1995, the Philippines scored 58.2 out of 100 points. <\/p>\n
Such score keeps the Philippines in the category of \"mostly unfree\" countries or those within the range of 50 points to 59.9 points. <\/p>\n
\"(The) score is 1.1 points higher than last year, with notable improvements in investment freedom and freedom from corruption outweighing a decline in business freedom,\" the editors said in a statement. <\/p>\n
They added that such score was below the global average of 59.6, but noted that the Philippines' improvement provided contrast to the world's 0.1 point gain. <\/p>\n
\"The global advance toward economic freedom has ground to a halt,\" they said. \"Since reaching a global peak in 2008, economic freedom has continued to stagnate.\" <\/p>\n
Even then, the editors observed an overall positive trend in 2012, with 91 countries improving their scores compared to 78 that declined. <\/p>\n
As for the Philippines, they noted that the government has pursued a series of legislative reforms toward an improved business environment that encourages broader-based job growth. <\/p>\n
Still, the editors said Philippine institutions needed \"deeper commitment to reform.\" <\/p>\n
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Original post: <\/p>\n
Philippines up 10 notches in 'economic freedom' list<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Manila (Philippine Daily Inquirer\/ANN) - The government's anti-corruption efforts helped push the Philippines' global ranking in terms of economic freedom by 10 notches to 97th among 177 countries and territories. Continue reading