Foreign investors predict rosy future for PH

THE FOREIGN business community expects the Philippine economy to accelerate by more than 10 percent a year starting 2018, with foreign direct investment inflows seen reaching as much as $12 billion annually.

Meeting such targets under the Arangkada Philippines project, however, will hinge on the next administration’s ability to carry out reform measures that business groups have long been clamoring for, officials of the Joint Foreign Chambers said in a briefing Tuesday.

“That’s our vision as far as the GDP (gross domestic product) growth is concerned. The other side of this is that if everything goes well, then the FDIs will also be higher and this will lead to more jobs in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors being created,” explained Henry J. Schumacher, vice president for external affairs at the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Inc.

“That’s the Arangkada project putting more gas and driving faster. I don’t see any reason why [these targets] can’t be achieved. But without these reforms, these [targets] are not going to happen. And it’s not just the foreign investors—even the local organizations such as the Management Association of the Philippines and the Makati Business Club are also on the same avenue,” Schumacher said.

While some of the quantitative goals may have changed, the ECCP official noted that the agenda under the Arangkada Philippines project remained the same, as it will continue to focus on fundamental issues including good governance, infrastructure, judicial and tax reforms, inclusive growth and job generation, as well as the easing of economic restrictions under the Constitution.

The so-called seven big winners or industries that are seen to generate the biggest potential for sustainable and inclusive growth still hold as well.

These are agribusiness; information technology/business process outsourcing; creative industries; infrastructure; manufacturing and logistics; mining; and tourism, medical travel and retirement.

The Joint Foreign Chambers is set to host on March 1 the fifth Arangkada Philippines Forum, which promises to be different, as this is the first time that the event will be held prior to the presidential elections, said Julian Payne, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines.

“Previous forums are retrospective but this forum will be a forward-looking one, as we will look at what we should be achieving in the decade ahead,” Payne explained.