The Effect of the Blue Economy on Philippine Economic Growth

Abstract

The ocean is one of the significant sources of livelihood in the Philippines. The blue economy refers to ocean sustainability, from biodiversity to ecosystem health maintenance. With the motive to generate income, the blue economy coincides with the concept of good stewardship of ocean resources. The blue economy is said to have the potential to boost economic growth. The study aimed to examine the effect of the blue economy on Philippine economic growth through the use of the following variables: the Fisheries sector, Maritime Transportation sector, and Tourism sector. In addition, the researchers utilized a descriptive-quantitative approach to observe the annual time series data that covered the period from 2000-2021. Using GretL as the statistical tool, the relationship between the variables was measured and correlated through an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis. The researchers determined that only one of the three sectors positively affect Philippine economic growth. The fisheries (F) and maritime transportation (MT) have no positive effect on Philippine economic growth, regardless of the fisheries sector being statistically significant to the real GDP. Meanwhile, the tourism sector (T) has a significant and positive correlation with Philippine economic growth.