THE Philippines can achieve First World status in 2050, said world-renowned Filipino architect and urban planner Felino Falafox Jr.

Speaking at a joint luncheon meeting of the Rotary Club's Makati chapters on July 29, Palafox said this can be attainable if the country can address corruption, criminality, climate change, inequality, infrastructure and investments.

By addressing these challenges, he believes that the Philippines could be the 16th highest economy in the world by 2050, as forecasted by Goldman Sachs and HSBC.

Palafox claimed that the Philippines should be a First World country, as it ranks in various industries in the world.

"We're number one in the world in sailors, seafarers. We're now number one in call centers. We are, I'd like to believe, we're number one in nurses. We're now number two in BPOs (business process outsourcing). We're number three in geothermal energy. We're the third- or fifth-longest coastline," he said.

"We're number four in shipbuilding, next to the Japanese and the Koreans. We're number five in all other mineral resources," he added.

"We are in the top ten. So we should really be a first world economy," Palafox told The Manila Times.

He mentioned that the country has a demographic soft spot in terms of average age at 26. "Filipino expatriates are the preferred employees of most employers all over the world," he continued, referring to overseas Filipino workers.

For this to happen, Palafox also said this would also take "visionary leadership, strong political will, good representation, good urban planning, good design like architectural engineering and excellent management."

By 2050, the Philippine population will reach 150 million, and 100 million Filipinos would be living in urban areas or cities. Given this scenario, Palafox said that the country will need 100 new sustainable, smart, resilient and livable cities in order to support and sustain its increasing population.

He added that the country has a very high development and investment potential.

"The Philippines is 400 times the size of Singapore. In fact, Singapore can fit inside Laguna Lake. We are 350 times the size of Hong Kong, eight times Taiwan [and] three times South Korea. South Korea is about the size of Mindanao," Palafox said, referring to the country's size and how it could use it to its advantage.

"We're very rich. God has blessed our country. In demographics, in natural resources, in beautiful islands," he concluded.