Australia’s AUD 45 million grant targets PHL jobs, investment
By Francis Allan L. Angelo
The Philippines and Australia have launched a program backed by an AUD 45 million grant, or about PHP 2 billion, to support reforms aimed at attracting investment and creating jobs.
For workers and small businesses, the intended gains are more job opportunities and lower costs from simpler approvals and clearer rules. Those benefits depend on reforms taking effect and proposed investments becoming operating projects.
The Promoting Growth, Resilience, Economic Stability, and Sustainability in the Philippines, or PROGRESS, Subsidiary Arrangement Program will also strengthen government capacity to pursue growth that benefits more Filipinos and can be sustained, according to a press statement from the Finance Department.
“This grant reflects Australia’s continued commitment to our development priorities,” Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go said during the launch.
PROGRESS will support efforts to remove unnecessary business barriers, make regulations more predictable, and lower operating costs. Clean energy and critical minerals are among the priority areas for reform.
The program will also support the Luzon Economic Corridor through project preparation, streamlined approvals, public-private partnerships, and blended finance.
The corridor, launched by the Philippines, the United States, and Japan in 2024, links development efforts across Subic Bay, Clark, Manila, and Batangas. Its priorities include transport infrastructure, clean energy, and semiconductor supply chains.
The Department of Finance said PROGRESS would help move priority projects from planning to implementation, improve competitiveness and energy security, and strengthen regional supply chains. These measures are intended to generate opportunities for investors, businesses, and workers.
Australian Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Matt Thistlethwaite said at a Sept. 22, 2026, press conference that the grant would cover five years and require no repayment.
He said Australia had allocated the funding, but individual projects and their funding shares were still being identified. He gave no numerical job-creation target.
Thistlethwaite said Australia had appointed Boston Consulting Group to work with Philippine government departments on developing the projects and funding commitments.
PROGRESS will build on the CREATE MORE Act, Green Lanes for Strategic Investments, the Public-Private Partnership Code, land and right-of-way reforms, and the continuing digitalization of government processes.
An earlier DOF announcement identified slow formal job creation, income inequality, and barriers facing women, persons with disabilities, and marginalized groups among the problems PROGRESS seeks to address. It also identified global and regional uncertainty and exposure to climate shocks.
That announcement outlined support for small and medium-sized enterprises, including investments in clean energy and climate mitigation. It also listed technical assistance, climate finance, and a fund for research and innovation among the program’s tools.
The launch moves the PROGRESS Subsidiary Arrangement signed in March 2026 into implementation. Go and Australian Ambassador Marc Innes-Brown signed the arrangement, according to the DOF’s March announcement.
Partner agencies and participating groups will work together to turn the program’s objectives into specific interventions, shared responsibility, and measurable results, the DOF said.
The DOF and Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will supervise the program’s implementing managing contractor, according to the March announcement.
The DOF described the partnership as spanning more than 80 years of bilateral relations and five decades of development cooperation. Australia’s official country brief dates formal diplomatic relations to 1946, making 2026 their 80th anniversary.
“The Department of Finance is committed to working closely with Australia and all our partners. We want to have tangible results immediately. Together, let us deliver PROGRESS as fast as possible for Filipinos,” Go said.
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