First of all, I would like to thank the Asia CEO Awards for the honor of being chosen as this year’s Lifetime Contributor Awardee for the public sector.

It is a great privilege to be named among the key architects of the Philippine economic story, even if I have only been on the job as Finance Secretary for the past nine months. Maraming salamat po sa pagkilala.

But let me make one thing clear—this award is not mine alone. This belongs to the entire DOF family. Because this is a product of our great teamwork.

Ito po ay simbolo ng dedikasyon at walang-kapantay na serbisyo ng bawat empleyado ng DOF para sa bayan. Ngayong gabi, ako lamang po ay representative ng DOF family na tatanggap sa award na ito.

And of course, we cannot speak of success without honoring the true pillars of our economy who are with us in this room—our MSMEs, large companies, and young leaders.

Kayo po ang tunay na mga bayani sa kwento ng ating pag-asenso. Because you are the real driving force pushing our economy forward—even through a pandemic, global uncertainties, and geopolitical tensions.

This message is meant to inspire you, but in truth, I am the one inspired by all of you.

On the part of the DOF, I assure you that our doors are always open for you. And we will do everything within our power to help you succeed. Dahil ang inyong tagumpay ay tagumpay ng bawat Pilipino at ng buong Pilipinas.

We will continuously push ahead with reforms that will make doing business in the Philippines as seamless as possible.

We are harnessing our demographic sweet spot to unleash the full potential of Filipino talents.

We are decisively managing inflation so our central bank can continue to cut interest rates.

And we will ensure to provide a stable, predictable, and sustainable investment environment where all of you can flourish.

In short, we are covering all fronts to make sure that you make more money to grow the economy, create more jobs, increase our people’s income, and lift more Filipinos out of poverty.

Muli, maraming salamat po sa inyong kontribusyon. Saludo po ako sa inyong lahat. Mabuhay ang Bagong Pilipinas!