Invest in the Philippines, Koreans urged

MANILA, Philippines—Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) Director General Lilia de Lima has urged Korean businessmen to invest in the Philippines.

De Lima sounded the call during the Philippine Investments Seminar held in Seoul on Nov. 14 which was attended by some 80 Korean businessmen, the Department of Foreign Affairs said, citing a report from the Philippine Embassy in Seoul.

In her speech, De Lima disclosed that Peza registered total investments of P113.6 billion this year, a 60-percent increase in investments over the previous year.

“She urged Korean companies to consider the Philippines as an investment destination due to its favorable investment climate and dynamic political regime,” the DFA said in a statement.

There are 269 Korean enterprises operating in various Peza zones, constituting 3.89 percent of all local and foreign investors.

During the seminar hosted by the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Samsung Electronics Philippines Manufacturing Corp. (Sephil) president Sun Hung Kim gave a testimonial.

He said Sephil had always believed in the Philippines as an investment destination, adding that Sephil was also proud of the company’s Filipino engineers who developed a fully localized product for the international market.

In the course of her two-day visit, De Lima met with Minister Choi Joong-kyung of the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and visited the assembly plant of S&T Daewoo.