Next gov’t must introduce bolder economic reforms

The next administration would be needing bolder reforms to steer the Philippines toward a more sustainable and inclusive economic growth over the next decade, foreign investors said.

“The reforms have begun and we’re benefiting. There should be a continuation of the reforms that have been done in recent years, even in the previous administration, and build on that. The country has a great potential but what we need is a more rapid implementation,” American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines senior advisor John D. Forbes said at the Fifth Arangkada Assessment Forum 2016 on Tuesday.

Such reforms and measures pertained to a combination of policy and operational instruments that would enable further industrial growth, such as: Job creation leading to lower unemployment and underemployment rates; doubling annual foreign direct investments to about $12 billion from the current $6 billion; doubling the export of goods target to $100 billion through product diversification and access to new markets; and doubling infrastructure spending to support trade and investments, tourism, and industrial development.

The foreign investors said the Aquino administration has made good progress in terms of implementing the bulk of the recommendations that were put forward to the government in 2010 by the Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) under the Arangkada Philippines initiative.

Of the 462 recommendations, about 74.5 percent or 333 proposals were considered active or moving under the Aquino administration as of end-2015. However, this reflected only a “statistically insignificant difference” compared to the 74.22 percent (or 331 recommendations) recorded as of end-2014.

Nonetheless, Forbes said there has been significant progress made from 2010 up to 2015.

Julian Payne, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, said, “There was a correlation between the lack of inclusive growth and the failure of real growth in the agriculture and mining sectors. These two sectors have the greatest potential for employment and development in the remote and rural areas.”

European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines president Guenter Taus added creative industries also have vast potential. “It can be the next sunshine industry but very little is done to support the industry. It can be a job creator in the rural areas.”