September - October 2000
Vol. XVIII No. 5
What's Inside 5
ERBL: Linking legislation and research
6
SERP-P: Gateway to policy research
7
OPAC@PIDS: Providing broader access to information materials
8
Enhancing the competitive environment in the Philippines
11
Curtain call: Retiring gracefully from PIDS
ISSN 0115-9097
Providing the infrastructure for research * and networking Mario B. Lamberte**
T
he Philippines has lagged behind East Asian economies in the last
22 years in terms of per capita income measured in US dollars
Editor's Notes
(Table 1). Although development is multidimensional and cannot be represented by one variable, the per capita income indica-
tor is used because it is generally associated with other socioeconomic indicaWhen September comes, PIDS employees are in high spirits. Not just because the Institute is celebrating its anniversary for one whole week. But mostly because this is the time of the year when the employees are the focus of attention as due recognition is given them for another year of hard work. At the same time, the opportunity for both the management and staff to put forward to the policymaking and research communities the Institute’s major accomplishments for the year and its plans to further its contributions to the critical task of national decisionmaking provides the PIDS personnel with a sense of keen anticipation and fulfillment. to page 16
tors.
Both Singapore's and Korea’s per capita incomes increased tenfold during the period 1977-1999. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s and Thailand’s per capita incomes rose almost fourfold during the same period. The Philippines’ per capita income, however, which was higher than that of Thailand in 1977, only doubled during the same period.
*Welcome remarks delivered during the opening ceremonies of the PIDS 23rd founding anniversary, 25 September 2000, Carlos P. Romulo Hall, NEDA sa Makati Building, Makati City, Philippines. ** President, Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).
We may look at the performance of these countries in another way by comparing them to a reference point— the average per capita income of middle-income countries. Obviously, this is a moving reference point, not a fixed one, and that makes it an interesting fighting target for emerging market economies like the Philippines. In 1977, Japan's and Singapore’s average per capita incomes were already way above the average per capita income of middle-income countries. By 1999, Korea and Malaysia joined this group of countries despite the douto page 2