The Philippine government plans to require active and incoming soldiers to contribute to their pension instead of the state fully funding it, to prevent a “fiscal collapse” caused by the strain on the national budget. This military pension overhaul is part of president Marcos Jr.’s economic team’s plan to narrow the fiscal shortfall to 3% of GDP by the end of his six-year term, following a record budget deficit of 7.3% in 2021 due to pandemic-driven spending. Bills on the pension overhaul are still in the early stages of discussions in Congress.