Manila’s envoy to Washington has urged Filipinos in the United States to support local startups and take advantage of the Philippines’ rebounding economy by investing in their homeland.
During the Atlanta leg of the private sector-led Third Philippine Investment Roadshow over the weekend, Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia Jr. told the audience that “the Filipino-American community also has a special role to play” in further growing the Philippine economy.
“I encourage you to consider ‘development investment’ as you make your remittances. You can be a small angel investor to small- and medium-size enterprises in the Philippines that actually comprise the backbone of Philippine business and drivers of growth and employment in your country,” Cuisia was quoted as saying by the Embassy of the Philippines in Washington DC.
In a statement issued by the Philippine embassy, Cuisia said that “the Philippines is ripe for business and investment for the estimated 3.5 million Filipinos currently in the United States.”
At the Atlanta forum, US businessmen were encouraged to pour money into the Philippines’ business process and knowledge process outsourcing sectors, information technology, construction and real estate, as well as pharmaceuticals and biotechnology.
Filipino economist Bernardo M. Villegas, the so-called “prophet of boom,” declared in his presentation that the country’s economy could expand by 10-15 percent in the next decade.
“The economy is so strong that even if the people decide to elect a movie star to succeed President Aquino, the Philippines will survive and continue to prosper,” Villegas said.
With lasting peace in Mindanao on the horizon following the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, Chamber of Mines of the Philippines president Benjamin Philip G. Romualdez said the industry expects greater interest among potential mining investors.
“[The agreement] is a step in the right direction and will bring us closer to developing the mining potential of Mindanao. The mining sector will likely contribute up to 2 percent of GDP [gross domestic product] if mining projects will be approved and implemented,” Romualdez said.