Government Subsidies
The government’s reaction of cushioning the impact of high inflation rate thru subsidies to the poor is laudable albeit temporary. We need a rather more stable program of government that will sustain our growth in the long run. Investing purely on infrastructure and social services may drain our financial resources without immediate return since these are both dead investments. I guess we also need to invest in our human resources like scholarships to potential but cash strapped income earners. We are rich in human resources so we need to also develop their skills and talents. Afterall, when they find jobs in the near future, they will immensely contribute to the economy thru remittances when they opt to work abroad or augment the local incomes of their families if they choose to stay in the domestic labor market.
Subsidies may also be infused directly to the buying prices of agricultural products such as livestock, swine, poultry, rice and vegetables. This way, farmers will be motivated to plant crops and raise food animals because of increased/subsidized buying prices. Consumers will also be spared from the unabated price increases of basic and prime commodities even if farm prices are high because of the government subsidy. With the depreciation of the peso, it won’t be wise to import rice and other agricultural products. Instead of spending more for imports, agricultural subsidies will be a better option.
