Senator Win Gatchalian has cautioned that the Philippines may fall short of its minimum 5% economic growth target this year as both global and domestic challenges continue to weigh on the economy.
In a radio interview on March 7, Gatchalian pointed out that the country is still reeling from weak performance in 2025, when growth slowed to around 4.4% — below the government’s 5% target.
He attributed the slowdown partly to issues surrounding flood control projects, which hampered government spending.
“Actually, ang konteksto kasi nito ay nanggaling tayo sa isang mahinang economic growth noong 2025 dahil nga dito sa flood control. Kung matatandaan natin dahil dito sa flood control issue, bumagal yung ating ekonomiya,” he explained.
The senator noted that projections for 2026 were adjusted downward to 5–6% because of last year’s sluggish results. He warned that rising petroleum prices, inflationary pressures, and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East could further dampen growth.
“Ako, personal forecast ko, mahirapan tayong matamaan yung 5% growth rate. Yan ang isang binabantayan namin sa Finance Committee, yung paggastos ng gobyerno. Dahil last year, nung pumutok yung flood control, bumagal yung paggastos ng gobyerno. At yan ang naging dahilan kung bakit mababa yung ating economic growth,” he said.
Gatchalian emphasized that swift and decisive government action is crucial to counter these challenges.
“If we implement the correct policies and the government moves quickly, we can overcome this,” he said, underscoring the urgency of addressing rising fuel costs.
Still, he admitted he is not optimistic that the country will reach even the lower end of its growth target, warning that inflation and high oil prices could trigger another slowdown.
“Imagine, our economic growth is already going down yet petroleum prices are still high. The inflation figure for February just came out — it went up to 2.2. So all of these can contribute to another slowdown in our economy. That’s why I’m not optimistic that we will reach our target,” he said.