DTI changes incentives tack to attract investors

The Department of Trade and Industry will be making some changes in the way it draws up its incentive package for investors to ensure that the 2014 Investment Priorities Plan will serve as an effective tool to boost Philippine industries.

“We’re designing the consultations in a different way now. Before, it was through the conduct of three public fora in Metro Manila, Cebu and Davao. That’s the traditional way, and it’s open to the public. Now what we want to do this time is intensify this. We will conduct sectoral consultations so that we can really go deeper into the analysis of issues of specific sectors,” explained Trade Undersecretary Adrian S. Cristobal Jr.

The trade official said the agency would determine which sectors to include in the consultations, expected to start this month.

Most likely, he said, these will include those identified in the Philippine Development Plan, such as the electronics, semiconductor, agribusiness, IT-BPM (information technology and business process management), creative industries, chemicals and shipbuilding.

“We want to do it on a sectoral basis, aside from geographical. We also want to take this to the Internet and post the outcomes on our website so that the public can comment. This will be a series of extensive consultations as we intend to come up with an honest-to-goodness IPP—a written document and not just a listing of areas, as in the past,” Cristobal said.

As explained, the IPP 2014 would be based largely on the industry roadmaps crafted over the past year and a half, wherein supply gaps and competitiveness issues were identified.

“It will be more of a strategic document that will, at the same time, target specific economic activities as identified in the different roadmaps. After the consultations, we will then craft the IPP. We want to finish this by the end of the first quarter,” he said.

Cristobal earlier said that there would be major improvements in the 2014 IPP. These will include fiscal perks for the manufacturing sector.

“Emerging from the industry roadmap studies is the need for the resurgence of the manufacturing industry, because manufacturing generates the most number of stable and secure employment opportunities and will help us in achieving a healthy balance of industries and sectors that will be in the 2014 IPP,” Cristobal said.

According to the DTI, the proposed 2014 IPP will be based on the value chain approach and composed of core activities.

These include manufacturing, services, agribusiness, and infrastructure; trade/market activities, both local and foreign sourced that will cover packaging, labelling, and product testing; and inputs/support industries, which include raw material supply, semi-manufactured products, plantation, machinery and equipment, labor/HR development, utilities (power, water, heat, etc.), research institutions, machinery repairs and maintenance, and other services (standards certification).