Action for Economic Reforms (AER) is a Philippine

non-government organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

engaged in research and advocacy. It was founded in 1996 by a group of progressive scholars and activists as an "independent, reform-oriented and activist policy group". AER works on macroeconomic issues, with an emphasis on

fiscal policy In economics and political science, fiscal policy is the use of government revenue collection ( taxes or tax cuts) and expenditure to influence a country's economy. The use of government revenue expenditures to influence macroeconomic variab ...

and

tax policy Tax policy refers to the guidelines and principles established by a government for the imposition and collection of taxes. It encompasses both microeconomic and macroeconomic aspects. The former focuses on issues of fairness and efficiency in ta ...

and administration, and looks at their impact on equity, poverty reduction, and sustainability. As part of its macroeconomic intervention, AER also addresses

exchange rate In finance, an exchange rate is the rate at which one currency will be exchanged for another currency. Currencies are most commonly national currencies, but may be sub-national as in the case of Hong Kong or supra-national as in the case of ...

, monetary, and

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

issues. AER likewise concerns itself with creating the conditions for long-term growth. In this context, AER gives attention to the role of institutions. It has pursued advocacy on building

state capacity State capacity is the ability of a government to accomplish policy goals, either generally or in reference to specific aims. More narrowly, state capacity often refers to the ability of a state to collect taxes, enforce law and order, and provide p ...

that will enable markets and correct both market and government failures. A key aspect of the work on institutions is th
promotion of transparency
especially pushing for a Freedom of Information law in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. AER also forges strong links with civil society organizations
legislators
and other government officials, as well as technocrats and academics towards building alliances to secure progressive reforms. While Philippine concerns occupy an extensive part of its programs, AER is also known for its regional and global work on crucial development issues like financing for development, the

Millennium Development Goals In the United Nations, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were eight international development goals for the year 2015 created following the Millennium Summit, following the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration. These w ...

, international trade, capital flows,

regional integration Regional Integration is a process in which neighboring countries enter into an agreement in order to upgrade cooperation through common institutions and rules. The objectives of the agreement could range from economic to political to envir ...

as well as government transparency and disclosure. Among official multilateral institutions that AER has worked with are United Nations agencies, the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

, the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

, the

Asian Development Bank The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank to promote social and economic development in Asia. The bank is headquartered in Metro Manila, Philippines and maintains 31 field offices around the world. The bank was establishe ...

, and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. Among AER's international NGO partners are
Christian AidOxfam
Focus on the Global South, th
Global Transparency Initiative
th
International Development Economic Associates
(IDEAs) and the Tax Justice Network. It has also collaborated with economists including Nobel Prize recipient

Joseph Stiglitz Joseph Eugene Stiglitz (; born February 9, 1943) is an American New Keynesian economist, a public policy analyst, political activist, and a professor at Columbia University. He is a recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (2 ...

and UN Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development Jomo K. Sundaram. AER writes weekly columns in two major Philippine business dailies
''Yellow Pad''
is published in the BusinessWorld and takes on political, social and economic policy issues affecting the

. Manuel Buencamino writes political commentaries for AER in the Business Mirror column, calle
''Dispatches from the Enchanted Kingdom''
These articles, policy papers, and statements can be found on th
AER website
as well as in th
Socioeconomic Research Portal of the Philippines
AER has publications such as The State and the Market : Essays on a Socially Oriented Philippine Economy and The Philippine Electric Power Industry Reform.Malaluan, Nepomuceno.(2003)The Philippine Electric Power Industry Reform: A tragedy of ADB and World Bank Private Sector Fundamentalism and Unaccountable Government. Quezon City: Action for Economic Reforms

References

External links

Action for Economic Reforms website

Rice Watch Action Network (R1)
- a group of organizations working to pursue policy changes in rice particularly in the area of trade and the nature of rice farming systems in the Philippines. Action for Economic Reforms is a member of R1. {{Authority control Research institutes in Metro Manila Think tanks based in the Philippines Political advocacy groups in the Philippines Economic reforms