NAKIPAGPULONG si Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. sa mga opisyal ng World Bank sa sidelines ng United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Sa isang kalatas, sinabi ni Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles na nakipagpulong si Pangulong Marcos kina World Bank East Asia at Pacific Regional Vice President Manuela Ferro at Philippines executive director Erivaldo Gomes.

“They discussed how to align the work of the Bank with the President’s priorities such as agriculture, clean energy, education and post-COVID economic recovery,” ayon kay Cruz-Angeles.

Napag-usapan din nina Pangulong Marcos, Ferro, at Gomes’ ang kahalagahan ng “research and development” kabilang na ang pagsisikap ng gobyerno ng Pilipinas na magtatag ng institute of virology at isang ahensiya na kahalintulad ng ‘ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ng Estados Unidos.

“The President, who is the concurrent agriculture secretary, also discussed the state of the sector with the World Bank leaders, citing areas that need to be addressed,” ayon kay Cruz-Angeles.

Hindi na nagbigay pa ng karagdagang detalye si Cruz-Angeles sa bagay na ito.

Sinabi pa ni Cruz-Angeles na nabanggit din aniya ni Pangulong Marcos ang kalagayan ng Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sa bansa, tinukoy ang pangangailangan at requirements para sa sektor para patuloy na maging “viable and competitive.”

“There was also discussion about financial inclusion and the target to have about 50 percent of personal transactions be digital by 2023,” ang wika ni Cruz-Angeles.

“The World Bank has stood with the Philippines in the most challenging times, bringing resources, linkages, and partnerships to bear on the country’s social, economic, and environmental initiatives since 1945. We are incredibly grateful and proud to continue partnering with the World Bank to improve the lives of Filipinos,” ang tinuran ni Pangulong Marcos sa kanyang miting sa sunod-sunod niyang tweets.

Sa kabilang dako, kasama ni Pangulong Marcos sa naturang miting ang miyembro ng kanyang economic team na kinabibilangan nina Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Central Bank Governor Felipe Medalla, Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual, and Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez at House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Sa pang-apat na araw ng working visit ni Pangulong Marcos, nakipagpulong ito kina US President Joe Biden at Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sa sidelines pa rin ng 77th UNGA. (CHRISTIAN DALE)