MANILA — President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. said the Philippines' hosting of the 49th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit gives the country an opportunity to press regional leaders to address concerns felt in Filipino households, including rising prices, energy and food security, and jobs.

"This gathering is very important, especially at this time," Mr. Marcos said in a prerecorded video message on Thursday.

He cited rising commodity and fuel costs, weakening economies in some countries, and security threats as among the challenges confronting Filipino households.

"Many of these problems cannot be solved by us alone, which is why ASEAN is so important," he said.

Mr. Marcos said the Philippines could use its ASEAN chairmanship to elevate issues that directly affect Filipinos, among them oil and food prices, security, agriculture, and jobs and livelihoods. He added that summit preparations had already generated work for microenterprises, weavers, performers, hospitality workers, and transport operators.

The country has been under a state of national energy emergency since March, when Mr. Marcos declared it in response to disruptions in global oil supplies linked to the Iran war. The declaration remains in effect heading into the summit, giving that agenda item an active domestic measure behind it.

Inflation quickened to 7.8% in October from 7.2% in September, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority, and averaged 5.6% in the first 10 months of the year. Those readings put hard numbers behind the household pressures Mr. Marcos wants regional leaders to address, and they align with what Filipinos themselves ranked first when asked what the host country should prioritize.

P22.9-Billion Allocation

Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said the government allocated P22.9 billion for ASEAN events in 2026, covering infrastructure projects, venue restorations, and security. She told reporters that the allocation covers all ASEAN 2026 activities and does not mean the full amount has been spent. Because the figure spans the full 2026 slate of ASEAN activities, it cannot be read as a cost for the summit alone.

The summit program includes more than 550 meetings, of which 393 had been completed and 164 were underway or scheduled, Ms. Castro said. She added that state auditors would examine government spending after the events — a review that will serve as the accountability checkpoint for the allocation once the hosting concludes.

"Every peso we spend is an investment for our country and for our Filipino workers," she said.

Summit Program

The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said diplomatic proceedings would begin on Nov. 13 and 14, when additional countries are set to accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.

ASEAN member states are also scheduled to sign the world's first region-wide digital economy framework agreement, which aims to expand trade. The signing gives the chairmanship a concrete deliverable timed to the leaders' meetings; by Mr. Marcos's own framing, the household issues he is elevating depend on the kind of collective regional action such sessions are built for.

On Nov. 15, ASEAN leaders will welcome guests of the chairman, including leaders from Canada and Brazil and representatives of the International Monetary Fund. Dialogue partners from Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia, the United Nations, and the United States are slated to join plenary sessions on Nov. 16 and 17. Manila will hand the ASEAN chairmanship to Singapore on Nov. 17, closing the Philippines' stint as chair.

Security and Traffic Measures

Security operations will involve 22,944 police officers and more than 3,300 traffic personnel, the PCO said, including 2,637 Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) officers and 716 highway patrol personnel assigned to escort delegations.

The MMDA said major roads would remain open, with security exclusion zones limited to the Philippine International Convention Center from Nov. 9 to 18. Authorities will suspend the vehicle number-coding scheme from Nov. 16 to 18, while shopping malls in Metro Manila will operate from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. starting Monday to help ease traffic congestion.

Public Opinion

A Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey found that 91% of adult Filipinos expect the country to benefit from hosting the 2026 ASEAN leaders' meetings.

The survey, conducted from March 24 to 31, showed 21% of respondents expecting the country to benefit "very much," 52% "much," and 17% "a little," while only 9% expected no benefit, SWS said in a statement on Wednesday.

Respondents identified rising prices and inflation as the top issue the Philippines should prioritize as host, at 19%, followed by the sea dispute with China at 16%, oil supply at 12%, and poverty at 9%. Of those priorities, the sea dispute stands out against the program schedule: China is among the dialogue partners slated for the Nov. 16 and 17 plenary sessions.

SWS also reported that net trust in ASEAN stood at a "moderate" +25 in September, down from a "good" +41 in June 2017. Among respondents aware of the organization, 46% expressed "much trust" and 21% expressed "little trust."

Twenty-eight percent of respondents already knew the Philippines would host the meetings, while 72% said they had heard about the hosting only during the interview. Prior awareness was highest in Metro Manila, at 42%, and among college graduates, at 55%. Net trust in ASEAN was likewise highest among college graduates, at +45.

The Philippines will host the 49th ASEAN Summit from Nov. 15 to 17 at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

The nationwide SWS survey used face-to-face interviews with 1,500 adults and had a margin of error of ±3 percentage points.

This report was originally published by BusinessWorld, with reporting by Erika Mae P. Sinaking and Francessca S. Abalos. Source: BusinessWorld