He pitched the county as an increasingly open destination for investments.
On Thursday, July 16, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gave his pitch for the Philippines during a a roundtable discussion co-hosted by the Milken Institute at the Philippine Embassy in Singapore and coordinated by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), with support from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
During which, he highlighted the Philippines’ transition to upper-middle-income status and urged investors to capitalize on reforms designed to attract long-term foreign capital.
“The Philippines remains committed to creating a stable, competitive and investment-friendly environment,” the President said.
He further noted that the country’s 52-million-strong workforce and its status as one of Southeast Asia’s largest consumer markets lets it have a “solid foundation for sustained economic growth,” in spite of an increasingly uncertain global environment.
He also billed the administration’s flagship “Build Better More” infrastructure program, which currently has 200 flagship projects worth over USD170 billion.
The Chief Executive cited the Luzon Economic Corridor as a key component of efforts to transform the Philippines into a regional hub for advanced manufacturing, electronics and critical mineral processing.
Moreover, he also noted the removal of foreign ownership restrictions in public services and retail trade, the extension of land lease agreements for foreign investors to a maximum of 99 years, and the permission for full foreign ownership of renewable energy projects.
The President also said that the government’s revamped investment incentive system now allows qualified projects to receive up to 40 years of combined tax and non-tax incentives.
On trade policy, he also reaffirmed the government’s goal of concluding and signing at least five additional free trade agreements, describing expanded market access as a critical pillar of the country’s long-term growth strategy.
At present, the Philippines is already a member of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and has existing trade agreements with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Japan and South Korea, while negotiations with the European Union and Canada continue.
The roundtable formed part of the President’s working visit to Singapore and was
The Milken Institute, a non-profit and non-partisan think tank that convenes leaders from business, finance, government and philanthropy to address global economic challenges.
To end the roundtable, the President also thanked the Milken Institute and regional business leaders for their continued interest in investing in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, a telecommunications company also reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Philippines’ digital transformation and technology infrastructure expansion.
Singtel, one of the leading telcos in Singapore, reaffirmed its long-term commitment through the expansion of NCS Philippines and the continued development of ST Telemedia Global Data Centres’ facilities.
During a separate meeting with ABC Impact, they also reaffirmed support for the nationwide expansion of AC Health, which is expected to improve access to healthcare services and create thousands of jobs for Filipinos.
At his meeting with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, the President said that the Singaporean leader expressed his congratulatory message for the recent upgrading of the Philippines to an “upper-middle income country” status by the World Bank.
“Sa kanilang meeting, nagpaabot ng pagbati si Prime Minister Wong kay Pangulong Marcos Jr. sa pag-angat ng Pilipinas bilang upper-middle-income country,” Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing in Malacañang.
She added, “Ayon sa Prime Minister, maituturing na respectable growth o matatag na pag-unlad ng Pilipinas ang pagiging upper-middle-income country sa likod ng mga pagsubok dulot ng kaguluhan sa Middle East.”
