President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said the newly established Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) will be utilized to finance high-priority projects.
“For strategic financing, some of the nation’s high-priority projects can now look to the newly established Maharlika Investment Fund, without the added debt burden,” Marcos said in his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday.
The MIF is the country’s first-ever sovereign wealth fund designed to infuse economic development by mobilizing government financial assets.
“In pooling a small fraction of the considerable but under-utilized government funds, the Maharlika Fund shall be used to make high-impact and profitable investments, such as the Build Better More program,” Marcos said.
The President said the gains made from the MIF would be reinvested for the country’s economic well-being.
To ensure sound financial management, Marcos assured that a group of internationally recognized economic managers will oversee the operations of the Fund, guided by principles of transparency and accountability.
“This guarantees that investment decisions will be based on financial considerations alone, absent any political influence,” Marcos said. “The funds for the social security and public health insurance of our people shall remain intact and separate.”
The Department of Finance (DOF) earlier said the MIF can look into big-ticket infrastructure such as in green and blue projects, countryside development, and other employment-generating projects.
Among them are public road networks, tollways, green energy, water, agro-industrial ventures, and telecommunications. PND
