MAGUINDANAO – To achieve participative economic development in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), the region’s Board of Investments (RBOI) conducted an investment consultation with stakeholders in the town of Parang in Maguindanao province.
Businessmen, local government officials, and other stakeholders gathered recently for the agency’s Investments Priorities Plan (IPP) consultation, an activity aimed at getting insights and concerns as well as discuss issues in the region’s investment promotion and generation.
Atty. Ishak Mastura, RBOI chairperson, said the consultation is usually conducted with businessmen and this was the first time that such activity was held with participation from the grassroots.
“The consultation is part of the Hataman administration’s approach to actively involve all players in the planning of the region’s economic development particularly on investment matters,” he said.
Atty. Mastura added that “the active participation of the government and the private sector in the development planning of the region is a key to sustainable development and that combined strengths of different sectors can create conducive business environment and enhance regional competitiveness.”
The IPP consultations specifically tackle the region’s investment performance, challenges, and opportunities. Other consultations are also scheduled in other provinces in the ARMM within the year. The region’s IPP is consistent with the Regional Development Plan of ARMM in accordance with the 2011-2016 Philippine Development Plan.
During the consultation, Parang mayor Ibrahim Ibay encouraged participants to become partners of the regional government in achieving economic growth by investing in the region. Parang, he said, is a potential area for major investments since it is considered as an ecozone and hosts the Polloc free port.
In the first quarter of 2016, RBOI-ARMM registered a P1.3-billion project of Gintong Agri Corp, a company engaged in oil palm plantation development. The region already exceeded its target of P900-million worth of investments. In 2015, the agency registered a total of P6.5 billion, the biggest in the history of the ARMM. (Bureau of Public Information)
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