The Department of Finance (DOF) said the Marcos administration is committed to establish a more business-friendly environment to encourage foreign investors to do business in the Philippines.
During the Philippine Economic Briefing in Singapore, Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno reaffirmed the two countries’ strong and enduring ties in trade, commerce, and development.
“As we rebuild our economy and gun for rapid, broad-based growth in the next six years, we have opened our doors even wider for mutually beneficial investments. This is why we believe that this is the best time to do business in the Philippines,” Diokno said.
President Marcos and his economic team recently visited Singapore last Sept. 6, which was the second leg of his inaugural state visits.
President Marcos, Jr. said that his state visit to Singapore aims to fully maximize trade and economic cooperation between Singapore and the Philippines.
He said that Singapore was already the Philippines’ highest investor in 2021 with Singaporean companies investing in big ticket projects in telecommunications, infrastructure, start-up and innovation, renewable energy, and healthcare.
Diokno said that the Marcos administration will continue to build a robust economy for a faster, greener, and more inclusive growth.
“Our economic prospects are bright and promising. In the second quarter of this year, the economy grew by 7.4 percent. The expansion was broad-based, with positive contributions from all three major sectors – agriculture, industry, and services,” said Diokno.
Diokno said that the country’s gross domestic product growth is an important achievement given ongoing risks posed by rising commodity prices and current geopolitical tensions.
He also cited increasing investor confidence with the Philippines’ foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows reaching a record $10.5 billion in 2021 and $4.2 billion for the first five months of 2022.
Diokno told business leaders in Singapore that the Marcos administration will maintain high investments in infrastructure equivalent to 5 percent to 6 percent of GDP annually, including the expansion of the Philippine’s digital infrastructure to quicken the country’s shift to the digital economy.
He said that the government will harness the public-private partnership mechanism to welcome impactful projects consistent with the country’s development goals.
He also cited game-changing economic reforms that make doing business in the Philippines more friendly. These include the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act or CREATE, and the amendments to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, Foreign Investments Act, and Public Service Act.
“The historic passage of our economic liberalization measures widens the space for international firms to invest in previously protected sectors and form joint ventures with Filipino companies,” said Diokno.
Singapore has been the Philippines’ top source of foreign direct investments and sixth largest trading partner.
Source: Manila Bulletin