MANILA – President Benigno Aquino has assured the business community that the Philippines is open for business and that his administration will work hard to minimize regulatory risk to investors.
Aquino who spoke recently at the ASEAN Business Awards Philippines in Makati City said his administration has carried out major reforms in the last few years to make the country more conducive to business even in the midst of global uncertainty.
“Our message to investors is clear, the Philippines is once again open for business. We have leveled the playing field, and are giving the investors the assurances that matter—that as they deal with the commercial risk that naturally comes with enterprise, our government will do its utmost to minimize regulatory risk,” he said.
Aquino recalled that the country’s bureaucracy was in shambles when the administration assumed office in 2010. But through the reforms initiated by the government, registering a business in the Philippines has become easy for investors, he said.
The government set up the Philippine Business Registry, which gathered the business registration processes of several different agencies into a single shop, thus eliminating red tape, he said.
Citing another example of reform, Aquino noted that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has optimized the bidding process, cutting down the required bidding documents from 20 to only 5.
Simply by plugging the leaks in DPWH’s system, the agency has saved nearly P28 billion on building, upgrading, and improving the country’s infrastructure, according to Aquino.
Because of these reforms, he said the Philippine economy grew by 7.2 percent last year, making the country one of the best performing economies in Asia. Aquino said that in the second quarter of this year the GDP grew by 6.4 percent.
He said the international community has recognized the country’s turnaround with credit rating agencies from all over the world announcing a total of 20 positive credit rating actions for the Philippines in the past four years.
Among the most significant upgrades last year were those from Moody’s, Fitch, and Standard & Poor’s, which declared the Philippines investment grade.
The Philippines has also consistently climbed global competitiveness ranking, the latest being the country’s leap to 52nd place on the World Economic Forum’s 2014 Global Competitiveness Report, up 33 places from its 85th position in 2010.
“All this was a result of our belief in our people, and in our efforts to put them in the global spotlight. The resurgence of the Philippines is a result of striving for success in the face of challenge,” Aquino said.
And as the ASEAN Integration comes in 2015, the President said he believes the country could compete with its neighbors as it faces another development in the increasingly globalized world.
The ASEAN Business Awards Philippines, the local counterpart of the regional ASEAN Business Awards, was established by the ASEAN Business Advisory Council to recognize enterprises that have contributed to regional growth.
20