"We invested in our greatest resource: our people," Aquino said opening the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO summit. "We gave people the opportunity to regain authorship of their own destinies."
Citing the 2008-13 decrease in out-of-school youth from 2.9 million to 1.2 million, the Philippine leader said national education reforms conforming to global standards are giving children "ample time to maximize learning."
He stressed that the Philippines has raised the employment rate of scholars from 28.5 percent to almost 70 percent under the Training for Work Scholarship Program.
Aquino said the expansion of a conditional cash transfer program, begun in 2010, gives "cash to poor households as long as their kids go to school and are vaccinated, among other conditions." The program has reached 4.4 million people in the Philippines, covering some 800,000 households, according to the president.
The Philippines transformed its economy from that of a poor Asian country paralyzed by corruption to one of 10 fastest growing countries in the world, according to Acquino.
"You have seen the transformation of our country – from being the Sick Man of Asia to becoming Asia’s New Darling," Aquino said.
He observed that the Philippine economy was one of the fastest growing in the world, hinging its growth strategy on an idea of empowerment.
"Empowered citizens are empowered consumers," the leader of the regional economic forum’s presiding country said.
"If we can fully engage the private sector in this mission, we can achieve this sooner rather than later," the president said.
Aquino said that he took over a country with a budgeting system rife with leaks and corruption. But over the last five years, the Philippines cracked down on "all those proven to have engaged in wrongdoing."
"Inclusive growth became the north star of our policy — growth that helps Filipinos lift themselves up from poverty," Aquino said. "I believe this is the most critical element of sustainable growth – inclusivity."
He said the country saw considerable improvements in the empowerment of people, development of technologies, and budget growth as Philippines has become one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
Aquino called on APEC business leaders to invest in the Philippines.
The APEC CEO Summit, initiated in the Philippines in 1996, takes place until Wednesday. Over 700 CEOs from APEC's 21 economies are expected to participate in the event.
The summit will be followed by the annual Economic Leaders' Meeting of the APEC economies on November 18-19.
A former president of the country is under hospital arrest, and a former chief justice was removed through impeachment. Several Philippine senators have been arrested for alleged involvement in a nationwide scam.
