MANILA -- President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Saturday said economic leaders at the World Economic Forum (WEF) tagged the Philippines as part of the “VIP Club,” which is a list of Southeast Asian countries with best-performing economies.

The President made this remark in an interview, saying the Philippines’ participation in the WEF in Davos, Switzerland served as an excellent platform to showcase the Philippine economy’s strong performance.

“Mabuti naman at nakapunta tayo rito, dahil sa pagpunta natin, nasama tayo sa tinatawag nilang VIP Club… ‘Yung VIP Club ay Vietnam, Indonesia, and Philippines. Yun daw ang pinakamagandang ekonomiya sa Asya,” the President said.

The President said he was able to meet with global leaders at the global forum, with several foreign investors expressing intent to explore business opportunities in the Philippines.

“Napakaganda ng mga naging pangyayari dahil napakarami naming nakilala at nakausap na mga sikat na mga economic leaders at mga political leaders at nandito silang lahat,” President Marcos said.

The President met with WEF Founder and Chairman Emeritus Klaus Schwab, whom he considers “a dear friend of the Philippines.”

The two discussed partnerships and collaboration to help the Philippines sustain equitable and inclusive growth and provide a better quality of life for Filipinos.

The chief executive also had the opportunity to meet and exchange views with several leaders of countries and organizations, such as World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, World Bank Managing Director for Operations Axel Van Trotsenburg, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, and former United Kingdom Prime Minister Tony Blair.

“The process that we undertook really in Davos was not simply to highlight the new situation, the new economic situation, the new policies, and the new concepts that we are promoting in the Philippines today, but also to learn from the world leaders and the world economic leaders what part the Philippines can play in this fragmented world,” Marcos said in his arrival speech.

“That was the main theme in this entire forum. [It] is how we bring back cooperation in a fragmented world. And we are seen to play a part in that and especially as a member state of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and as a leading economy in Asia,” the President pointed out.

In his visit to Davos, the President highlighted the administration’s policies, including the Philippine Development Plan, the 8-Point Socioeconomic Agenda, and “various other policies and legislations that spotlight the economic reforms of the Philippines that have led to its sustained growth. (PCO)