President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivered his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 25, at the Batasang Pambansa Complex in Quezon City in fulfillment of his duty as the President of the Republic.

Marcos’s SONA, which lasted for over an hour, tackled the government's plan for the economy, agriculture, social welfare, education, tourism, health, digitalization, infrastructure, transportation, energy, and legislations.

He started his speech by greeting the vice president, former presidents, members of the Senate, members of The House of Representatives, justices of the Supreme Court, members of the diplomatic corps, members of the cabinet, the first lady and their children, other guests, and the people of the Philippines.

Marcos then proceeds to talk about his administration’s agenda.

He began by tackling his plans to help the economy recover from the effects of COVID-19. He talked about tax administration reforms, productivity-enhancing investments, eco-zones, and adjusting the tax system. 

Additionally, Marcos instructed the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) to submit a development plan for 2023-2028 by the end of the year.

“One of the main drivers of our push for growth and employment will be in the agricultural sector,” Marcos said as he talked about how the agricultural sector can help the economy. 

Furthermore, he spoke of increasing production, providing subsidies to farmers, strengthening the “value chain,” modernization of farming with the use of new technology, farm-to-market roads, moratorium on land amortization, condoning the existing agrarian reform loans, and turning over agricultural lands to qualified beneficiaries.

For the tourism sector, Marcos talked about road improvements, upgrading and creating more international airports, promoting undiscovered tourist spots, and requiring an institutionalized creative industry.

Marcos tasked the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to act faster in giving help to places affected by calamities and add operation centers, warehouses and storage for relief goods. He also told DSWD to make sure that qualified families will be the beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

“Hindi rin natin nakakalimutan ang mga solo parents at mga nanay na nahiwalay sa kanilang mga mister dahil sa karahasan,” he said as he vowed to strengthen the program in Violence against Women and Children.

“Wala na tayong gagawing lockdown,” Marcos said as he began to talk about COVID-19.

He also mentioned that the vaccine booster rollout is still going on, and the government will create a Center for Disease Control and Prevention and a vaccine institute. 

Beyond COVID-19, Marcos said that there is a need for a stronger health care system. He said that the administration will build more hospitals and health centers outside NCR and that they will lower the prices of medicine and ensure enough supply of it.

In terms of education, Marcos said that students will return to full face-to-face classes. He also said that the condition and availability of schools must be addressed.

He mentioned that the K-12 curriculum is being reviewed, and the poor quality of educational materials and supplies must end. He emphasized that the performance of Filipino students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics should be refined and developed.

For digitalization, Marcos said that digitalization will be pushed to improve government services. He also mentioned that the National ID will play a big role in the digital transformation. 

In addition, he tasked the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to deploy digital connectivity across the Philippines to assure that no citizen will be left behind.

With regards to infrastructure, Marcos vowed to continue and expand the “Build Build Build Program” started by Former President Rodrigo Duterte. He said that his administration is committed to finishing the ongoing railway projects and improving roads and transportation systems in the country.

Marcos recognized the need to increase the level of energy production because the demand for energy is growing despite limited supplies. He also mentioned that the government will revisit the nuclear power plants and increase the use of renewable energy sources such as geothermal, hydropower, solar, and wind.

For the welfare of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), Marcos tasked the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) to remove the red tape system by automating the verification of contracts and issuing secure Overseas Employment Certifications (OEC) that can be kept in a smartphone. He also said that the government will establish a One Repatriation Command Center (ORCC) to help OFWs being abused and stuck in conflicts.

“On the area of foreign policy, I will not preside over any process that will abandon even one square inch of territory of the Republic of the Philippines to any foreign power,” Marcos said as he talked about foreign policy. He also emphasized that the Philippines shall continue being a friend to all and enemy to none.   

Lastly, Marcos proposed 19 legislations for Congress to pass. These include the National Government Rightsizing Program; budget modernization bill; valuation reform bill; Passive Income and Financial Intermediary Taxation Act; E-Government Act; Internet Transaction Act; Government Financial Institutions Unified Initiatives to Distressed Enterprises for Economic Recovery; Medical Reserve Corps; National Disease Prevention Management Authority; Virology Institute of the Philippines; Department of Water Resources; Unified system of separation, retirement, and pension; E-Governance Act; National Land Use Act; National Defense Act; Mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps and National Service Training Program; enactment of enabling law for natural gas industry; amendments to Electric Power Industry Reform Act; and amendments to build-operate-transfer law.

“We have assembled the best Filipino minds to help navigate us through this time of global crisis that we are now facing. We will endure. Let our Filipino spirit ever remain undimmed. I know this in my mind, I know this in my heart, I know it in my very soul, The state of the nation is sound,” Marcos concluded.