Funds to improve business climate in PH up

The British government plans to fund in 2014 projects that will help promote transparency and efficiency in business registration in the Philippines, as well as increase the government’s capacity to regulate non-competitive business practices.

In a posting on its website, the British Embassy in Manila said it was seeking project proposals that can qualify under the South East Asia Prosperity Fund.

The Philippines is among the countries that are benefiting from the South East Asia Prosperity Fund, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (FCO) technical cooperation program aimed at creating the conditions for global growth among countries in Southeast Asia.

The program has so far supported over 90 policy projects, valued at £3.4 million, which were implemented in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Burma, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Based on the Prosperity Fund Strategy and Guidance for the Philippines 2014-2015, among the projects that may qualify include those that deepen private sector involvement in the economy; encourage closer global and regional economic integration on a nondiscriminatory basis; break down barriers to cross border trade and investments; and those that push for transparency and a rules-based economic system in Southeast Asia.

The target is for the projects to begin by May 2014 and completed by March 2015. Amy R. Remo