Peza: Approved investment pledges to increase 8% in ’16

On the back of growing interest from foreign investors to relocate their facilities to the country, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) expects the value of approved investment pledges to increase by as much as 8 percent this year.

Peza director general Lilia G. De Lima said the agency also sees exports from Peza-managed economic zones to grow by 5 to 8 percent, while employment generation was expected to rise by 8 to 10 percent.

“Never have I seen such interest from other countries, with prospective investors coming in to [set up shop in the Philippines]. What we can offer them is our young labor force, [an advantage over] other ageing societies in Asia,” de Lima told reporters on the sidelines of the Toyota Motor Philippines’ roll-off  ceremony for the all new Innova in Laguna.

De Lima said more investors from Japan were starting to relocate their facilities to the Philippines from China. Taiwan, meanwhile, was expected to become the country’s next biggest source of investments.

“Normally, we would target 10-10-10 (meaning 10 percent growth for investments, exports and employment). But because (of continued growth), we target a 5 to 8 percent growth in investments for the entire year for Peza because we’re coming already from a high base. Exports would also grow that much,” she added.

Last year, Peza approved a total of 598 projects, which could generate P295.085 billion in investments, up 5.58 percent compared to the P279.5 billion worth of projects approved by Peza in 2014. Exports of Peza-registered companies, meanwhile, reached $40.38 billion by the end of November 2015.

According to de Lima, manufacturing remained to be of huge interest to many foreign investors specifically those engaged in manufacturing electronics and automotive parts.

The Peza chief, however, stressed the significance of having adequate infrastructure to serve the growing requirements of investors.