The Philippine's new president, Rodrigo Duterte, officially takes office on Thursday. The inauguration ceremony is taking place at the Malacanang Palace, the presidential office in Manila.

Duterte was mayor of the far-south city of Davao for 22 years. He won last month's presidential election in a landslide. His election campaign focused almost entirely on the scourges of murder, rape, drug abuse and corruption. He has promised a ruthless and deeply controversial war on crime, as the chief focus of his six-year term.

He also said he will continue his predecessor's economic policies, which focused on infrastructure and fiscal efficiency, to push growth up to seven or eight percent.