DTI may offer more perks to spur country’s R&D

MANILA, Philippines–The Department of Trade and Industry has expressed its willingness to provide new or additional incentives for companies that will set up research and development (R&D) centers in the country to help boost the local manufacturing and services sectors.

Such incentives will be especially beneficial for the Philippine semiconductor and electronics industry, which is being urged to upgrade to high-value activities to enable local players to move up the global value chain.

Although there are existing incentives for R&D, as provided under the 2013 Investment Priorities Plan, the agency will still welcome any proposal from the private sector for other incentives that could be included in the IPP to further strengthen R&D in the country, Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo said.

Speaking at the 13th CEO Forum of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. (Seipi), Domingo stressed the importance of R&D to the country’s manufacturers.

“For the semiconductor and electronics industry, which is a major growth driver of the economy, it is important that it not only survive but continue to thrive in a highly competitive market. The industry must pursue and manage the shift from legacy products, which currently account for 80 percent of output, to new generation products,” Domingo said.

“To spur innovation or the shift to high value manufacturing, the Board of Investments is focusing investments by affirming fiscal and nonfiscal incentives for R&D including the establishment of research and testing laboratories, centers of excellence and technical, vocational and educational training institutions,” he added.

Seipi president Dan Lachica said in the same forum that R&D has become critical for many semiconductor and electronics firms, which are still mostly working on legacy products.

“The downtrend may continue unless we move up the value chain, and develop new products and technologies that make us better in terms of increasing export levels,” he explained.–Amy R. Remo