The author graduated from the University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, with a degree in Political Science. His undergraduate thesis about poverty, the homeless, and squatting in the Philippines shows that such problems, which was present since the dawn of time, would require a change not only in laws and policies, but also the frame of mind of the Filipino, in order to solve them.
He has a degree in Law at UE Manila, and is now working at the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry as Manager of the Advocacy Department. He spends most of his time writing speeches, novels, posting notes in his blogs, and managing and developing programs and projects for the business sector in the Philippines.
The author is also an avid computer geek who has started dismantling computers since he was young in the 1980s. He can install video cards and sound cards even if the computer is turned on. Fortunately, he has never been electrocuted or physically hurt or damaged. Sadly, we cannot say the same for the computers he "fixed." His adventurous whims gave him advanced knowledge in the intricacies of computer world.
His expertise in computers made him adept in handling cellphones because of the similarity in desktop framework. He has silently followed his hobby of pursuing technological breakthroughs by buying second hand cellphones in the outskirts of Quiapo and Caloocan where these gadgets abound.
While he may be fond of online computer games, the last he played them were during the earlier versions of Starcraft, Warcraft, and Diablo I, II, and III. He also likes to listen to Metallica, The Cranberries, Green Day, and several other songs, the singers of which he does not give a care about in the world.
Mr. Domingo was also a member of the call center industry for two years where he was able to master the art of calming and pacifying an irate subscriber.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Great Speeches: Business Responds to the Crisis by Emmanuel T. Domingo
Never has the world seen, since the Great Depression of the 1930s, the global economy drastically slowing down and contracting, with both developed and developing countries greatly affected. Trade, which is considered to be one of the most important engines of global growth, has drastically been cut as a result of lower consumer demand and lack of access to credit.
With the advent of the crisis, business leaders and government managers are scrambling to develop and craft economic strategies and roadmaps responsive enough to save our ailing industries and generate more jobs for society’s most vulnerable sectors.
The two near- term challenges faced by the Philippines now are safeguarding the achievement of recent years (including stronger growth momentum and progress in fiscal management) and protecting society’s most exposed groups during the slowdown. The second means helping those who have lost, and are in danger of losing, their jobs due to company closures and retrenchments.
Needless to say, difficult times require innovative solutions and strategies which business must develop in these trying times. It is important for businesses to think proactively. Every businessman who wants to survive needs more than strategies for competitiveness. Business needs to create realizable, long-term plans to ensure our sustainability and survival. Faced with uncertainties, several businesses have to shape up and attain unparalleled efficiency to keep them above water. Businessmen need to show more resiliency and embrace change and innovation as key business strategies to survive.
No to Protectionism, Pursuing Multilateralism
PCCI remains supportive of efforts to push for the conclusion of the WTO Doha Development Round. Given the prevailing global economic realities, the private sector believes that the conclusion of the Doha Round has become a necessity that would help reinvigorate many distressed economies.
Studies show that global trade will decline by 9% this year, the biggest contraction since the World War Two. Both the developed and developing countries will be negatively affected, with exports from developed countries falling by 10% and 2-3% for developing countries.
As such, the PCCI strongly believes that a more open trading system, which is the main agenda of the Doha Round, is one of the best avenues to help address the ongoing global economic crisis. PCCI considers the principles of openness, transparency, non-discrimination, and fairness espoused by the Doha Round to be important drivers in stimulating the growth of a battered global economy.
The PCCI strongly opposes any calls for protectionism and isolationism. The experience of increasing tariff rates and reverting to other protectionist measures during the Great Depression showed that these kinds of policies only lead to the further depression of economies and thus, to global economic slump.
The Philippine business community believes that any form of protectionist measures will not, in anyway, help in the recovery of the global economy, but instead hamper global economic growth. While some countries have signified their intention to protect their domestic industries and sectors from the crisis, history has shown that this will only lead to retaliatory measures from others, which would only further undermine global trade.
Stimulating Local Economies, rebuilding confidence
Local economic development appears to be the vital engine for economic activity stimulation – given the strong potential for job creation leading to consumption activities. In order to address the global economic challenge, PCCI, on its part, proposed and government accepted to create a P100 billion (US$ 2 billion) stimulus package for infrastructure spending. The fund will be contributed 50/ 50 by GFIs and the private sector and the upside is, spending from this fund will not impact on the budget deficit. The mechanics and other details with respect to use, accountability and transparency, structure, sovereign guarantees, monitoring and control are now being worked out by PCCI with DOF, DBP, SSS, Landbank, GSIS, NEDA, and NDC.
In addition, the business sector would need to work together with government economic planners in putting our house in order and make our economy more resilient and globally competitive so that as the world turns for the better, we are ready to seize the opportunities.
On the tourism front, with the number of foreign visitors expected to decline this year, we would need to re-prioritize by promoting domestic tourism. We could encourage Filipinos to explore the Philippines instead of going abroad. We need to spend our travel money in the Philippines and give business to local entrepreneurs involved in the travel industry, i.e., food, transportation, souvenirs, handicrafts. We need to do our share in keeping local tourist places viable. It is possible that not too many foreign visitors will come around in the next two years, maybe even longer.
Another important immediate matter is rejuvenating people’s confidence in the banking system. The most immediate and critical intervention is to secure our banking sector by increasing maximum deposit insurance to 1 million pesos as depositor confidence is the point of maximum leverage in this context of uncertainty and competitive moves of our neighbors in this regard.
Improving Export Performance
We also need to find ways to improve our export performance. This would be addressed by finding other markets for our export products. We need to find other markets for Philippine products in order to boost exports. As of now, 8 of the top 10 economies which the Philippines exports to will be in recession while China and Malaysia will experience significant slowdown. The weaker the economies of our trading partners, the weaker the demand for Philippine goods.
Weaker exports affect not only the peso and the country’s ability to finance its imports and service its foreign debt. More worrisome is slowing exports’ impact on jobs. In turn, a slower export means more factory closures and layoffs. Pushed to its logical conclusion, this means worsening poverty and rising incidence of hunger.
PCCI Igniting the F.I.R.E.
In order to provide a roadmap for the business sector, PCCI has identified and will focus in the next 2 years on 4 key basic areas: namely: Food Security, Infrastructure, Re-engineered Education, and Energy (or F.I.R.E.).
First, we need to focus on investing on agricultural development and reform because agriculture employs a third of our country’s workforce.
Second, Infrastructure is a key factor that directly affects the country’s global competitiveness. An efficient transport network will reshape the country’s physical and economic configuration.
Third, to address our unemployment problem, we need to re-engineer our educational system in order to address the mismatch between skills of our graduates and the requirement of the industry.
It goes without saying that business leaders need to help address the issue of unemployment. The important focus now should be on job creation and job preservation. In order to preserve jobs and help establishments and companies survive, several adjustment measures may also need to be implemented like flexible work arrangements, compressed work week, forced leave, reduce work hours/ days, reduced number of shifts and job rotation.
The strong potentials of the business process outsourcing industry for job generation have given our country something to hold to keep our heads above water. We would need to diversify and focus on high value BPO services like animation, IT services, medical and legal transcription, engineering design, and software development, among others.
Fourth, on Energy, PCCI advocates a predictable energy policy to level the playing field. PCCI has drawn a roadmap to influence policy makers to achieve supply/ demand balance using the right and appropriate mix for our country’s power generation sector. This is aimed at promoting energy self- sufficiency at competitive cost.
Regional Cooperation against the Crisis
Strengthening regional domestic demand and increased intra-regional trading are key to the growth and productivity of the region, amid the global economic slowdown.
Trade and investment agreements and regional market integration have lowered the risks of investing abroad thereby fuelling outward investments. With fiscal and economic reforms in place, Asia-Pacific countries now have large foreign reserves which, according to studies by the UN-ESCAP, are invested outside the region.
Benefiting from growth in their home markets, the corporate sector has been increasingly investing in neighboring developing economies and in developed economies as strategy to secure access to global supply chain, markets, brands, scale economies, technologies, human capital. Leading the pack are Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan.
The financial turmoil is also offering prime investment opportunities for sovereign wealth from the region.
State-owned firms such as Singapore’s Temasek Holdings pumped in USD$6.2 billion into Merrill Lynch's coffers. Other firms buying equity investments in financial institutions in the United States and Europe include the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation in Citigroup and UBS, the China Investment Corporation in Morgan Stanley and Temasek Holdings in Barclays.
Due to the region’s relatively strong growth projections, the subprime crisis has potentially increased interest in Asia-Pacific’s assets. While not immune to the volatility in the global market, the ability of the region to be insulated from the subprime crisis would depend on the policy responses Asian economies would initiate to address the new challenges
ASEAN Regional Integration for Competitiveness
ASEAN’s response to the challenge of competitiveness has been regional integration to create scale economies through such measures as the ASEAN Industrial Cooperation Scheme (AICO), the Comprehensive Preferential Tariff of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA- CEPT), and the Framework Agreement on Trade in Services (AFAS), the Investment Area Agreement (AIA), and the priority integration project. These measures have facilitated joint ventures and branching out within the region as companies endeavor to secure access to a competitive supply chain, markets, scale economies, technologies and human capital.
Enhancing ASEAN’s Competitiveness
Key factors at play in ASEAN’s competitiveness are continuing government support, government- private sector dialogue, regional policy framework for corporate governance and competition, policy support to SMEs and infrastructure development.
Governments must continue to play a facilitating role in enabling regional champions, local players and ASEAN SMEs to compete and thrive in the global economy.
To further maintain its competitive edge amidst the global economic slowdown, ASEAN must leverage on key fundamental issues such as corporate governance, and competition.
Considering their sizable contribution to the ASEAN economies, strong support should be given to SMEs in terms of access to technology, finance and information, and upgrade of industrial and management skills.
On the announcement that ASEAN plans to have an infrastructure finance mechanism, there is also a need to urge policymakers to seriously consider immediately putting up regional mechanism to bolster infrastructure development.
Sailing the Rough Seas: Economic Resiliency Plan
In the face of the global meltdown, the government intends to stay afloat and avoid negative growth through a stimulus package called the “Economic Resiliency Plan (ERP)”. The ERP will minimize the impact of the global economic downturn through measures aimed at stimulating positive performance in all sectors of society.
The ERP is being put in place as two-thirds of the world are in recession due to the global economic crunch. The Philippines has managed to sustain its growth because of past and ongoing reforms to ensure soundness of its macroeconomic fundamentals.
Government is aware that it is critical that government agencies “hit the ground running” and that fiscal and monetary policy adjustment be enforced alongside implementation of pump-priming programs and vital projects and activities (PPAs).
The ERP entails ensuring resources through better revenue collection; enhancement of cash liquidity, access to credit and low interest rates; and more effective spending. It seeks to ensure stable growth, save and create jobs, provide assistance to the most vulnerable sectors, ensure low and stable prices, and improve competitiveness in preparation for the global economic rebound.
Fiscal Stimulus
Simply put, the government intends to battle the present crisis by increasing spending. To do so, it proposes a PhP330 billion stimulus package broken down as follows:
First, PhP160 billion is the increase in the 2009 budget over that of 2008. Secretary Ralph Recto of NEDA said the fund would be used to hire needed personnel such as teachers, policemen, soldiers and doctors. He added that this is an opportune time to step up repair and rehabilitation of government buildings and fast-track purchases of supplies and equipment such as patrol cars and ambulances.
This fund would also strengthen government agriculture support though the FIELDS program. Initiated last year, FIELDS includes: (a) the provision of cheaper fertilizer and micronutrients; (b) rehabilitation and restoration of irrigation facilities; (c) extension, education and training; (d) loans for inputs, shallow tube wells, and surface water pumps; (e) the provision of dryers and other post harvest facilities; and (f) subsidy for seeds and adoption of quality genetic materials.
Government emphasized that agencies responsible for infrastructure development should implement and scale up quick-disbursing high impact projects. These projects, which are labor intensive and have high local value added, include accessibility facilities for the disabled; the construction, repair, or rehabilitation of irrigation systems; and the construction of local roads and asphalt overlay, among others. He said agencies should work with LGUs in implementing such projects and make sure that project implementation is closely monitored.
Furthermore, this fund would expand social protection. Government would (a) realign resources to increase social welfare programs like conditional cash transfers; (b) ensure full national government contribution to the National Health Insurance Program (support program for the indigent); (c) increase scholarship/training allocation; and (d) augment funds for upgrading primary and secondary hospitals. In addition, government would also match grants to LGUs and make more educational loans available.
The expansion in social protection would not only provide essential services but also create jobs with the hiring of teachers, doctors, and nurses, among others.
For this portion of the ERP to be fully effective, Secretary Recto emphasized that 60 percent of the budget should be spent by the first semester of 2009 and resources should be shifted from slow to fast-moving projects. He added that, in implementing these PPAs, government should take advantage of the “window of opportunity” as presented by the declining inflation and interest rates and good weather conditions in the first hallf of the year.
Second, income tax adjustments during the year would circulate around PhP40 billion in the market. The scheduled reduction of corporate income taxes from 35 to 30 percent would allow firms to spend about PhP20 billion more in investments while the increase in tax exemption in personal income tax empowers individuals with an estimated PhP20 billion.
Third, the government will ask the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the Social Security System (SSS), and the government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to use their investible funds and work with the private sector to invest in needed infrastructure. Recto said this PhP100 billion package would not only generate jobs, increase money in the market but also prepare the country for “the good times ahead.”
Fourth, the government also looks at pumping around PhP30 billion by improving the fund disbursement of SSS, GSIS and PhilHealth. Secretary Recto said he sees a very big gap between individuals’ mandatory contributions and their claims and benefits. For example, he said PhilHealth has annual contributions roughly amounting to PhP24-25 billion while yearly claims and benefits only total about PhP15 billion. He said this may not only expand peoples’ access to health services but also provide business to private hospitals. In this light, he concludes that PhilHealth, GSIS and SSS can contribute PhP10 billion each for additional benefits to its members.
Other Measures
The government, business and labor sector are now working to implement coping mechanisms to prevent job and business closures. At present, some businesses and industries have already implemented (a) shortened work shifts and work weeks; (b) maximized vacation leaves; and (c) adopted rotating forced leaves, among others.
NEDA said that OFWs abroad and those returning would be assisted through enhanced reintegration services and livelihood assistance. There would be a “payback package” for OFWs which include the setting up of a PhP250 million support fund, skills training to avail of in-demand jobs in other parts of the world, and setting up of Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and Overseas Workers Welfare Administrations (OWWA) desks in the provinces to match OFWs’ skills with available jobs.
Also, government would expand trade, investment and tourism and accelerate lending to small and medium enterprises (SMEs).On the other hand, exporting firms are encouraged to diversify, innovate and technologically upgrade their products.
PCCI believes that government and the private sector, including, local chambers, business organizations, business councils and all stakeholders must work together in perfect unity to endure and overcome the global economic turmoil.
With the advent of the crisis, business leaders and government managers are scrambling to develop and craft economic strategies and roadmaps responsive enough to save our ailing industries and generate more jobs for society’s most vulnerable sectors.
The two near- term challenges faced by the Philippines now are safeguarding the achievement of recent years (including stronger growth momentum and progress in fiscal management) and protecting society’s most exposed groups during the slowdown. The second means helping those who have lost, and are in danger of losing, their jobs due to company closures and retrenchments.
Needless to say, difficult times require innovative solutions and strategies which business must develop in these trying times. It is important for businesses to think proactively. Every businessman who wants to survive needs more than strategies for competitiveness. Business needs to create realizable, long-term plans to ensure our sustainability and survival. Faced with uncertainties, several businesses have to shape up and attain unparalleled efficiency to keep them above water. Businessmen need to show more resiliency and embrace change and innovation as key business strategies to survive.
No to Protectionism, Pursuing Multilateralism
PCCI remains supportive of efforts to push for the conclusion of the WTO Doha Development Round. Given the prevailing global economic realities, the private sector believes that the conclusion of the Doha Round has become a necessity that would help reinvigorate many distressed economies.
Studies show that global trade will decline by 9% this year, the biggest contraction since the World War Two. Both the developed and developing countries will be negatively affected, with exports from developed countries falling by 10% and 2-3% for developing countries.
As such, the PCCI strongly believes that a more open trading system, which is the main agenda of the Doha Round, is one of the best avenues to help address the ongoing global economic crisis. PCCI considers the principles of openness, transparency, non-discrimination, and fairness espoused by the Doha Round to be important drivers in stimulating the growth of a battered global economy.
The PCCI strongly opposes any calls for protectionism and isolationism. The experience of increasing tariff rates and reverting to other protectionist measures during the Great Depression showed that these kinds of policies only lead to the further depression of economies and thus, to global economic slump.
The Philippine business community believes that any form of protectionist measures will not, in anyway, help in the recovery of the global economy, but instead hamper global economic growth. While some countries have signified their intention to protect their domestic industries and sectors from the crisis, history has shown that this will only lead to retaliatory measures from others, which would only further undermine global trade.
Stimulating Local Economies, rebuilding confidence
Local economic development appears to be the vital engine for economic activity stimulation – given the strong potential for job creation leading to consumption activities. In order to address the global economic challenge, PCCI, on its part, proposed and government accepted to create a P100 billion (US$ 2 billion) stimulus package for infrastructure spending. The fund will be contributed 50/ 50 by GFIs and the private sector and the upside is, spending from this fund will not impact on the budget deficit. The mechanics and other details with respect to use, accountability and transparency, structure, sovereign guarantees, monitoring and control are now being worked out by PCCI with DOF, DBP, SSS, Landbank, GSIS, NEDA, and NDC.
In addition, the business sector would need to work together with government economic planners in putting our house in order and make our economy more resilient and globally competitive so that as the world turns for the better, we are ready to seize the opportunities.
On the tourism front, with the number of foreign visitors expected to decline this year, we would need to re-prioritize by promoting domestic tourism. We could encourage Filipinos to explore the Philippines instead of going abroad. We need to spend our travel money in the Philippines and give business to local entrepreneurs involved in the travel industry, i.e., food, transportation, souvenirs, handicrafts. We need to do our share in keeping local tourist places viable. It is possible that not too many foreign visitors will come around in the next two years, maybe even longer.
Another important immediate matter is rejuvenating people’s confidence in the banking system. The most immediate and critical intervention is to secure our banking sector by increasing maximum deposit insurance to 1 million pesos as depositor confidence is the point of maximum leverage in this context of uncertainty and competitive moves of our neighbors in this regard.
Improving Export Performance
We also need to find ways to improve our export performance. This would be addressed by finding other markets for our export products. We need to find other markets for Philippine products in order to boost exports. As of now, 8 of the top 10 economies which the Philippines exports to will be in recession while China and Malaysia will experience significant slowdown. The weaker the economies of our trading partners, the weaker the demand for Philippine goods.
Weaker exports affect not only the peso and the country’s ability to finance its imports and service its foreign debt. More worrisome is slowing exports’ impact on jobs. In turn, a slower export means more factory closures and layoffs. Pushed to its logical conclusion, this means worsening poverty and rising incidence of hunger.
PCCI Igniting the F.I.R.E.
In order to provide a roadmap for the business sector, PCCI has identified and will focus in the next 2 years on 4 key basic areas: namely: Food Security, Infrastructure, Re-engineered Education, and Energy (or F.I.R.E.).
First, we need to focus on investing on agricultural development and reform because agriculture employs a third of our country’s workforce.
Second, Infrastructure is a key factor that directly affects the country’s global competitiveness. An efficient transport network will reshape the country’s physical and economic configuration.
Third, to address our unemployment problem, we need to re-engineer our educational system in order to address the mismatch between skills of our graduates and the requirement of the industry.
It goes without saying that business leaders need to help address the issue of unemployment. The important focus now should be on job creation and job preservation. In order to preserve jobs and help establishments and companies survive, several adjustment measures may also need to be implemented like flexible work arrangements, compressed work week, forced leave, reduce work hours/ days, reduced number of shifts and job rotation.
The strong potentials of the business process outsourcing industry for job generation have given our country something to hold to keep our heads above water. We would need to diversify and focus on high value BPO services like animation, IT services, medical and legal transcription, engineering design, and software development, among others.
Fourth, on Energy, PCCI advocates a predictable energy policy to level the playing field. PCCI has drawn a roadmap to influence policy makers to achieve supply/ demand balance using the right and appropriate mix for our country’s power generation sector. This is aimed at promoting energy self- sufficiency at competitive cost.
Regional Cooperation against the Crisis
Strengthening regional domestic demand and increased intra-regional trading are key to the growth and productivity of the region, amid the global economic slowdown.
Trade and investment agreements and regional market integration have lowered the risks of investing abroad thereby fuelling outward investments. With fiscal and economic reforms in place, Asia-Pacific countries now have large foreign reserves which, according to studies by the UN-ESCAP, are invested outside the region.
Benefiting from growth in their home markets, the corporate sector has been increasingly investing in neighboring developing economies and in developed economies as strategy to secure access to global supply chain, markets, brands, scale economies, technologies, human capital. Leading the pack are Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan.
The financial turmoil is also offering prime investment opportunities for sovereign wealth from the region.
State-owned firms such as Singapore’s Temasek Holdings pumped in USD$6.2 billion into Merrill Lynch's coffers. Other firms buying equity investments in financial institutions in the United States and Europe include the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation in Citigroup and UBS, the China Investment Corporation in Morgan Stanley and Temasek Holdings in Barclays.
Due to the region’s relatively strong growth projections, the subprime crisis has potentially increased interest in Asia-Pacific’s assets. While not immune to the volatility in the global market, the ability of the region to be insulated from the subprime crisis would depend on the policy responses Asian economies would initiate to address the new challenges
ASEAN Regional Integration for Competitiveness
ASEAN’s response to the challenge of competitiveness has been regional integration to create scale economies through such measures as the ASEAN Industrial Cooperation Scheme (AICO), the Comprehensive Preferential Tariff of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA- CEPT), and the Framework Agreement on Trade in Services (AFAS), the Investment Area Agreement (AIA), and the priority integration project. These measures have facilitated joint ventures and branching out within the region as companies endeavor to secure access to a competitive supply chain, markets, scale economies, technologies and human capital.
Enhancing ASEAN’s Competitiveness
Key factors at play in ASEAN’s competitiveness are continuing government support, government- private sector dialogue, regional policy framework for corporate governance and competition, policy support to SMEs and infrastructure development.
Governments must continue to play a facilitating role in enabling regional champions, local players and ASEAN SMEs to compete and thrive in the global economy.
To further maintain its competitive edge amidst the global economic slowdown, ASEAN must leverage on key fundamental issues such as corporate governance, and competition.
Considering their sizable contribution to the ASEAN economies, strong support should be given to SMEs in terms of access to technology, finance and information, and upgrade of industrial and management skills.
On the announcement that ASEAN plans to have an infrastructure finance mechanism, there is also a need to urge policymakers to seriously consider immediately putting up regional mechanism to bolster infrastructure development.
Sailing the Rough Seas: Economic Resiliency Plan
In the face of the global meltdown, the government intends to stay afloat and avoid negative growth through a stimulus package called the “Economic Resiliency Plan (ERP)”. The ERP will minimize the impact of the global economic downturn through measures aimed at stimulating positive performance in all sectors of society.
The ERP is being put in place as two-thirds of the world are in recession due to the global economic crunch. The Philippines has managed to sustain its growth because of past and ongoing reforms to ensure soundness of its macroeconomic fundamentals.
Government is aware that it is critical that government agencies “hit the ground running” and that fiscal and monetary policy adjustment be enforced alongside implementation of pump-priming programs and vital projects and activities (PPAs).
The ERP entails ensuring resources through better revenue collection; enhancement of cash liquidity, access to credit and low interest rates; and more effective spending. It seeks to ensure stable growth, save and create jobs, provide assistance to the most vulnerable sectors, ensure low and stable prices, and improve competitiveness in preparation for the global economic rebound.
Fiscal Stimulus
Simply put, the government intends to battle the present crisis by increasing spending. To do so, it proposes a PhP330 billion stimulus package broken down as follows:
First, PhP160 billion is the increase in the 2009 budget over that of 2008. Secretary Ralph Recto of NEDA said the fund would be used to hire needed personnel such as teachers, policemen, soldiers and doctors. He added that this is an opportune time to step up repair and rehabilitation of government buildings and fast-track purchases of supplies and equipment such as patrol cars and ambulances.
This fund would also strengthen government agriculture support though the FIELDS program. Initiated last year, FIELDS includes: (a) the provision of cheaper fertilizer and micronutrients; (b) rehabilitation and restoration of irrigation facilities; (c) extension, education and training; (d) loans for inputs, shallow tube wells, and surface water pumps; (e) the provision of dryers and other post harvest facilities; and (f) subsidy for seeds and adoption of quality genetic materials.
Government emphasized that agencies responsible for infrastructure development should implement and scale up quick-disbursing high impact projects. These projects, which are labor intensive and have high local value added, include accessibility facilities for the disabled; the construction, repair, or rehabilitation of irrigation systems; and the construction of local roads and asphalt overlay, among others. He said agencies should work with LGUs in implementing such projects and make sure that project implementation is closely monitored.
Furthermore, this fund would expand social protection. Government would (a) realign resources to increase social welfare programs like conditional cash transfers; (b) ensure full national government contribution to the National Health Insurance Program (support program for the indigent); (c) increase scholarship/training allocation; and (d) augment funds for upgrading primary and secondary hospitals. In addition, government would also match grants to LGUs and make more educational loans available.
The expansion in social protection would not only provide essential services but also create jobs with the hiring of teachers, doctors, and nurses, among others.
For this portion of the ERP to be fully effective, Secretary Recto emphasized that 60 percent of the budget should be spent by the first semester of 2009 and resources should be shifted from slow to fast-moving projects. He added that, in implementing these PPAs, government should take advantage of the “window of opportunity” as presented by the declining inflation and interest rates and good weather conditions in the first hallf of the year.
Second, income tax adjustments during the year would circulate around PhP40 billion in the market. The scheduled reduction of corporate income taxes from 35 to 30 percent would allow firms to spend about PhP20 billion more in investments while the increase in tax exemption in personal income tax empowers individuals with an estimated PhP20 billion.
Third, the government will ask the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the Social Security System (SSS), and the government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to use their investible funds and work with the private sector to invest in needed infrastructure. Recto said this PhP100 billion package would not only generate jobs, increase money in the market but also prepare the country for “the good times ahead.”
Fourth, the government also looks at pumping around PhP30 billion by improving the fund disbursement of SSS, GSIS and PhilHealth. Secretary Recto said he sees a very big gap between individuals’ mandatory contributions and their claims and benefits. For example, he said PhilHealth has annual contributions roughly amounting to PhP24-25 billion while yearly claims and benefits only total about PhP15 billion. He said this may not only expand peoples’ access to health services but also provide business to private hospitals. In this light, he concludes that PhilHealth, GSIS and SSS can contribute PhP10 billion each for additional benefits to its members.
Other Measures
The government, business and labor sector are now working to implement coping mechanisms to prevent job and business closures. At present, some businesses and industries have already implemented (a) shortened work shifts and work weeks; (b) maximized vacation leaves; and (c) adopted rotating forced leaves, among others.
NEDA said that OFWs abroad and those returning would be assisted through enhanced reintegration services and livelihood assistance. There would be a “payback package” for OFWs which include the setting up of a PhP250 million support fund, skills training to avail of in-demand jobs in other parts of the world, and setting up of Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and Overseas Workers Welfare Administrations (OWWA) desks in the provinces to match OFWs’ skills with available jobs.
Also, government would expand trade, investment and tourism and accelerate lending to small and medium enterprises (SMEs).On the other hand, exporting firms are encouraged to diversify, innovate and technologically upgrade their products.
PCCI believes that government and the private sector, including, local chambers, business organizations, business councils and all stakeholders must work together in perfect unity to endure and overcome the global economic turmoil.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Great Speeches: Sample Talking Points
From the Author: The format of talking points need not follow the rigid format of an actual speech. Usually, talking points just need to have bullet points that will highlight the most important matters to be discussed. Just like the sample below.
OUTLOOK ON THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY
2ND HALF – 2005
GENERAL OUTLOOK
BUSINESS IN GENERAL IS HOPEFUL THAT THE ECONOMY WILL REMAIN IN GOOD SHAPE THE IN LATER PART OF 2005 AMIDST THE PRESSURES WE ARE CONFRONTED WITH AT THE MOMENT.
BOTTLENECKS
CONTINUOUS INCREASE IN THE PRICES OF PETROLEUM – AFFECTS BUSINESS OPERATIONS AND INCREASES PRODUCTION COST; AFFECTING THE GENERAL PUBLIC GIVING RISE TO OTHER ISSUES ON TRANSPORT COST, WAGE AND PRICES OF COMMODITIES LEADING INCREASE IN INFLATION
BUDGET DEFICIT – REMAINS TO BE A SERIOUS GOVERNMENT PROBLEM – CAN ONLY BE ADDRESSED IF THE NEEDED LEGISLATION ON INCREASE GOVERNMENT REVENUES SUCH AS VAT IS PASSED AND IMPLEMENTED PROPERLY
GOVERNANCE ISSUES SUCH AS CORRUPTION AND INSURGENCY AFFECTING INVESTOR CONFIDENCE AND FOREIGN CAPITAL INFLOW TO THE COUNTRY
ECONOMY IN THE 1ST HALF OF 2005
BUSINESS’ VIEW ON THE ECONOMY IN THE 1ST QUARTER OF THE YEAR IS SOMEWHAT MIXED.
o THE CREDIT DOWNGRADING, INCREASING PRICES OF BASIC COMMODITIES AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION ON GOVERNANCE REFORMS HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE WEAKNESS OF THE ECONOMY ON THE 1ST QUARTER OF 2005;
o ON THE OTHERHAND, THE RECOVERY OF THE PESO, CONSISTENT POSITIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE STOCK MARKET, STABLE INTEREST RATES AND THE REMITTANCE INFLOW FROM OUR OFWs CONTRIBUTE TO THE POSITIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE ECONOMY.
WHAT BUSINESS HOPES TO SEE IN THE 2ND HALF OF 2005
PASSAGE OF KEY LEGISLATION AND ECONOMIC REFORM MEASURES THAT WILL CONTRIBUTE GREATLY TO IMPROVING THE COUNTRY’S ECONOMIC CONDITION, THESE INCLUDE:
o THE VAT BILL – 2% INCREASE IS MORE OF A BETTER OPTION THEN TACKLE THE EXEMPTIONS AS THEY IMPACT ON CONSUMER INTEREST
o ANTI-SMUGGLING BILL THAT WILL PUT TO A STOP TO SMUGGLING ACTIVITIES THAT SEVERELY HURT THE LOCAL ECONOMY AND AFFECT GOVERNMENT REVENUES OF OVER P50 BILLION EVERY YEAR
o POSSIBILITY OF REVIVING THE OPSF TO PROTECT CONSUMER INTEREST IN THE CONTINUOUS INCREASE IN THE OIL PRICES. PCCI IS SERIOUSLY TACKLING AND THIS MATTER AND PREPARING ITS POSITION TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE ENERGY DEPARTMENT
o GOVERNMENT SHOULD INCREASE ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FOR SME DEVELOPMENT – WE NEED TO DEVELOP ENTREPRENEURS ESPECIALLY IN THE COUNTRYSIDE
ISSUES THAT NEED WIDE SECTORAL CONSULTATIONS
o WAGE INCREASE – BOTH EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYERS ARE AFFECTED BY THE PRESSURES OF LOCAL AND GLOBAL ECONOMY – INCREASING THE WAGE SHOULD TRANSLATET TO AN INCREASE WORKERS’ PRODUCTIVITY AND THE BUSINESS OUTPUT– IT SHOULD GO HAND IN HAND – THEN WE CAN BE MORE COMPETITIVE AND PROVIDE MORE TO PROVIDE FOR WORKERS’ DEMANDS. WE ARE ALSO HOPING THAT WE CAN BROADEN THE TAX EXEMPTION BASE OF THE WORKERS AS INCENTIVE
o TRANSPORT INCREASES – SHOULD BE DECIDED ON THE INTEREST OF THE COMMUTING PUBLIC – TAKING ALSO INTO CONSIDERATION THE INCENTIVES THAT GOVERNMENT CAN OFFER TO LESSEN THE IMPACT OF A TRANSPORT FARE INCREASE AND THE PRICES OF OIL.
o INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS – THIS IS NOT GIVEN ENOUGH ATTENTION BUT THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. RIGHT NOW, OUR COUNTRY IS PROCEEDING TOWARDS LOWERING OF TARIFFS PER OUR COMMITMENT TO ASEAN-AFTA AND WTO.
o THUS, PUBLIC INTEREST IS AT STAKE SINCE WE ARE NOW LIBERALIZING OUR INDUSTRIES. WE HAVE UPCOMING TRADE AGREEMENTS WITH JAPAN AND US WHICH WILL HOPEFULLY BENEFIT US BY ATLEAST $20 BILLION OF EXPORTS.
o BUT WE NEED TO BE VERY CAREFUL IN TACKLING THESE TRADE AGREEMENTS, WE SHOULD TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION HOW THESE AGREEMENTS CAN IMPROVE THE CONDITION OF THE RURAL AREAS AND ADDRESSING POVERTY.
OUTLOOK ON THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY
2ND HALF – 2005
GENERAL OUTLOOK
BUSINESS IN GENERAL IS HOPEFUL THAT THE ECONOMY WILL REMAIN IN GOOD SHAPE THE IN LATER PART OF 2005 AMIDST THE PRESSURES WE ARE CONFRONTED WITH AT THE MOMENT.
BOTTLENECKS
CONTINUOUS INCREASE IN THE PRICES OF PETROLEUM – AFFECTS BUSINESS OPERATIONS AND INCREASES PRODUCTION COST; AFFECTING THE GENERAL PUBLIC GIVING RISE TO OTHER ISSUES ON TRANSPORT COST, WAGE AND PRICES OF COMMODITIES LEADING INCREASE IN INFLATION
BUDGET DEFICIT – REMAINS TO BE A SERIOUS GOVERNMENT PROBLEM – CAN ONLY BE ADDRESSED IF THE NEEDED LEGISLATION ON INCREASE GOVERNMENT REVENUES SUCH AS VAT IS PASSED AND IMPLEMENTED PROPERLY
GOVERNANCE ISSUES SUCH AS CORRUPTION AND INSURGENCY AFFECTING INVESTOR CONFIDENCE AND FOREIGN CAPITAL INFLOW TO THE COUNTRY
ECONOMY IN THE 1ST HALF OF 2005
BUSINESS’ VIEW ON THE ECONOMY IN THE 1ST QUARTER OF THE YEAR IS SOMEWHAT MIXED.
o THE CREDIT DOWNGRADING, INCREASING PRICES OF BASIC COMMODITIES AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION ON GOVERNANCE REFORMS HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE WEAKNESS OF THE ECONOMY ON THE 1ST QUARTER OF 2005;
o ON THE OTHERHAND, THE RECOVERY OF THE PESO, CONSISTENT POSITIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE STOCK MARKET, STABLE INTEREST RATES AND THE REMITTANCE INFLOW FROM OUR OFWs CONTRIBUTE TO THE POSITIVE PERFORMANCE OF THE ECONOMY.
WHAT BUSINESS HOPES TO SEE IN THE 2ND HALF OF 2005
PASSAGE OF KEY LEGISLATION AND ECONOMIC REFORM MEASURES THAT WILL CONTRIBUTE GREATLY TO IMPROVING THE COUNTRY’S ECONOMIC CONDITION, THESE INCLUDE:
o THE VAT BILL – 2% INCREASE IS MORE OF A BETTER OPTION THEN TACKLE THE EXEMPTIONS AS THEY IMPACT ON CONSUMER INTEREST
o ANTI-SMUGGLING BILL THAT WILL PUT TO A STOP TO SMUGGLING ACTIVITIES THAT SEVERELY HURT THE LOCAL ECONOMY AND AFFECT GOVERNMENT REVENUES OF OVER P50 BILLION EVERY YEAR
o POSSIBILITY OF REVIVING THE OPSF TO PROTECT CONSUMER INTEREST IN THE CONTINUOUS INCREASE IN THE OIL PRICES. PCCI IS SERIOUSLY TACKLING AND THIS MATTER AND PREPARING ITS POSITION TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE ENERGY DEPARTMENT
o GOVERNMENT SHOULD INCREASE ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FOR SME DEVELOPMENT – WE NEED TO DEVELOP ENTREPRENEURS ESPECIALLY IN THE COUNTRYSIDE
ISSUES THAT NEED WIDE SECTORAL CONSULTATIONS
o WAGE INCREASE – BOTH EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYERS ARE AFFECTED BY THE PRESSURES OF LOCAL AND GLOBAL ECONOMY – INCREASING THE WAGE SHOULD TRANSLATET TO AN INCREASE WORKERS’ PRODUCTIVITY AND THE BUSINESS OUTPUT– IT SHOULD GO HAND IN HAND – THEN WE CAN BE MORE COMPETITIVE AND PROVIDE MORE TO PROVIDE FOR WORKERS’ DEMANDS. WE ARE ALSO HOPING THAT WE CAN BROADEN THE TAX EXEMPTION BASE OF THE WORKERS AS INCENTIVE
o TRANSPORT INCREASES – SHOULD BE DECIDED ON THE INTEREST OF THE COMMUTING PUBLIC – TAKING ALSO INTO CONSIDERATION THE INCENTIVES THAT GOVERNMENT CAN OFFER TO LESSEN THE IMPACT OF A TRANSPORT FARE INCREASE AND THE PRICES OF OIL.
o INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS – THIS IS NOT GIVEN ENOUGH ATTENTION BUT THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. RIGHT NOW, OUR COUNTRY IS PROCEEDING TOWARDS LOWERING OF TARIFFS PER OUR COMMITMENT TO ASEAN-AFTA AND WTO.
o THUS, PUBLIC INTEREST IS AT STAKE SINCE WE ARE NOW LIBERALIZING OUR INDUSTRIES. WE HAVE UPCOMING TRADE AGREEMENTS WITH JAPAN AND US WHICH WILL HOPEFULLY BENEFIT US BY ATLEAST $20 BILLION OF EXPORTS.
o BUT WE NEED TO BE VERY CAREFUL IN TACKLING THESE TRADE AGREEMENTS, WE SHOULD TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION HOW THESE AGREEMENTS CAN IMPROVE THE CONDITION OF THE RURAL AREAS AND ADDRESSING POVERTY.
Great Speeches: Sample Closing Remarks
HON. QUINGLIN, MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA;
HON. DOMINGO PANGANIBAN, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE;
MEMBERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS;
COLLEAGUES IN THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY;
GOOD MORNING.
IT IS TRULY A PRIVILEGE TO HAVE WITH US MINISTER DU QINGLIN AND SECRETARY DOMINGO PANGANIBAN IN OUR MIDST THIS MORNING.
HEARING AND LEARNING FROM CHINA’S AGRICULTURE MINISTER ON THEIR AGRICULTURAL POLICY EDUCATED ME, AND ALL OF US HERE, ON HOW WE COULD IMPROVE OUR OWN AGRICULTURAL SECTOR. WE ALL KNOW THAT IF THE PHILIPPINES WANTS TO BE COMPETITIVE, WE MUST FIRST HAVE A STRONG AGRICULTURAL BASE. FOOD SECURITY IS A GIVEN IN ANY STABLE ECONOMY, AS WE HAVE SEEN IN OTHER COUNTRIES WHO ARE WELL DEVELOPED.
IN THE PHILIPPINES, WE CONSIDER FARMERS AS ‘BAYANIS’ OR NATIONAL HEROES, BECAUSE FILIPINO FARMERS LITERALLY PROVIDE FOOD IN THE TABLE OF EVERY CITIZEN. I BELIEVE THAT THIS ALSO HOLDS TRUE FOR THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT.
THUS, LET US CONTINUE TO DO WHAT OUR GOVERNMENTS AIM TO DO AND WORK TOGETHER TO IMPROVE THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR BY PROVIDING THEM WITH ALL THE ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL HELP THEY CAN GET.
THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT HAS GOOD PLANS FOR IMPROVING THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR. THE PRIVATE SECTOR SUPPORTS THE AGENCY’S VARIOUS PROGRAMS. THUS, EXISTING POLICIES SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED AND FURTHER ENHANCED.
I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF YOU WHO ARE PRESENT HERE IN THIS BREAKFAST MEETING, IT HAS BEEN A FRUITFUL GATHERING. OUR EXCHANGES HAVE BEEN BENEFICIAL FOR ALL OF US, BE IT IN THE GOVERNMENT OR IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
A PLEASANT DAY TO ALL.
HON. DOMINGO PANGANIBAN, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE;
MEMBERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS;
COLLEAGUES IN THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY;
GOOD MORNING.
IT IS TRULY A PRIVILEGE TO HAVE WITH US MINISTER DU QINGLIN AND SECRETARY DOMINGO PANGANIBAN IN OUR MIDST THIS MORNING.
HEARING AND LEARNING FROM CHINA’S AGRICULTURE MINISTER ON THEIR AGRICULTURAL POLICY EDUCATED ME, AND ALL OF US HERE, ON HOW WE COULD IMPROVE OUR OWN AGRICULTURAL SECTOR. WE ALL KNOW THAT IF THE PHILIPPINES WANTS TO BE COMPETITIVE, WE MUST FIRST HAVE A STRONG AGRICULTURAL BASE. FOOD SECURITY IS A GIVEN IN ANY STABLE ECONOMY, AS WE HAVE SEEN IN OTHER COUNTRIES WHO ARE WELL DEVELOPED.
IN THE PHILIPPINES, WE CONSIDER FARMERS AS ‘BAYANIS’ OR NATIONAL HEROES, BECAUSE FILIPINO FARMERS LITERALLY PROVIDE FOOD IN THE TABLE OF EVERY CITIZEN. I BELIEVE THAT THIS ALSO HOLDS TRUE FOR THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT.
THUS, LET US CONTINUE TO DO WHAT OUR GOVERNMENTS AIM TO DO AND WORK TOGETHER TO IMPROVE THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR BY PROVIDING THEM WITH ALL THE ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL HELP THEY CAN GET.
THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT HAS GOOD PLANS FOR IMPROVING THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR. THE PRIVATE SECTOR SUPPORTS THE AGENCY’S VARIOUS PROGRAMS. THUS, EXISTING POLICIES SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED AND FURTHER ENHANCED.
I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF YOU WHO ARE PRESENT HERE IN THIS BREAKFAST MEETING, IT HAS BEEN A FRUITFUL GATHERING. OUR EXCHANGES HAVE BEEN BENEFICIAL FOR ALL OF US, BE IT IN THE GOVERNMENT OR IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
A PLEASANT DAY TO ALL.
Great Speeches: Reaction to Keynote Speaker's Speech
(Pleasantries)
Thank you very much for inviting us to be part of this forum.
PCCI stands committed to pioneer sustainable initiatives through our various local chambers to ensure that the problems of population management and poverty incidence will be addressed especially in the rural areas of the country.
It is true that business plays a vital role in contributing to the upliftment of the quality of life of individuals especially the low-middle income families and SME workers. Over the years, we have seen the plight of people who are in the midst of poverty and growing number of needs for their families. As a result of this, a number of social problems arises – criminality, street children, child labor, among others, are just some of the social constraints that we are confronted with in the various communities where businesses operate.
In this view, corporate social responsibility has emerged as a function of business. But CSR doesn’t stop in providing temporary relief in the lives of the less fortunate but providing a sustainable means for these individuals and families to develop their full potentials as actors in economic development.
I agree on PRISM’s goal of increasing productivity of workers vis-à-vis population management. By doing so, as I mentioned earlier, we are able to develop the full potentials of individuals to contribute to the economic growth and development of the country.
Coming from this perspective, we at PCCI as the largest business organization in the country and the recognized voice of Philippine business has come up strong with our platform of advocacy on population management.
Population management makes perfect business sense. It is in this context that our population management advocacy is premised at. PCCI’s population management advocacy and activities are anchored on the general understanding of the development challenges of the high population growth rate in the country as it impacts the sustainability of business.
Our thrust is to act as a conduit in bringing forward the necessary information to help individuals and couples come up with an informed decision and exercise their freedom of choice in managing their families.
Moreso, to effectively articulate our vision into doable programs we are adopting a three-pronged approach to effectively engage our local chambers in implementing specific projects that will cater to the needs of their SMEs and their workers. These approaches consist of advocacy, partnership with NGOs and establishment of service clinics.
These I do believe go hand in hand with the ideals expressed by Cris in articulating PRISM’s vision of seeing business-led interventions on population management.
But our appreciation of population management as to the role of business doesn’t end here. Having a vital function in administering population management activities, we look at the bigger picture that defines our emerging role in this intensive program of advocacy.
This is the reason why as part of our workprogram, we will also be looking at emerging issues on reproductive health such as HIV/AIDS prevalence in the workplace, the alarming high infant and maternal mortality rates, and the underdeveloped healthcare infrastructure in the country. All these call for enhanced interventions that only the private sector can provide supplementing all other programs of government.
We welcome PRISM’s entry to the population management advocacy and service delivery spectrum. Your ideals concretely link the planned interventions we in PCCI have in mind.
It is in this regard that I wish to inform you that we are ready and committed to work hand in hand in ensuring that the efforts we have started years back will not stall and continue to flourish especially in communities where private sector support is most needed.
Once again, thank you very much for this opportunity and good morning to all.
Thank you very much for inviting us to be part of this forum.
PCCI stands committed to pioneer sustainable initiatives through our various local chambers to ensure that the problems of population management and poverty incidence will be addressed especially in the rural areas of the country.
It is true that business plays a vital role in contributing to the upliftment of the quality of life of individuals especially the low-middle income families and SME workers. Over the years, we have seen the plight of people who are in the midst of poverty and growing number of needs for their families. As a result of this, a number of social problems arises – criminality, street children, child labor, among others, are just some of the social constraints that we are confronted with in the various communities where businesses operate.
In this view, corporate social responsibility has emerged as a function of business. But CSR doesn’t stop in providing temporary relief in the lives of the less fortunate but providing a sustainable means for these individuals and families to develop their full potentials as actors in economic development.
I agree on PRISM’s goal of increasing productivity of workers vis-à-vis population management. By doing so, as I mentioned earlier, we are able to develop the full potentials of individuals to contribute to the economic growth and development of the country.
Coming from this perspective, we at PCCI as the largest business organization in the country and the recognized voice of Philippine business has come up strong with our platform of advocacy on population management.
Population management makes perfect business sense. It is in this context that our population management advocacy is premised at. PCCI’s population management advocacy and activities are anchored on the general understanding of the development challenges of the high population growth rate in the country as it impacts the sustainability of business.
Our thrust is to act as a conduit in bringing forward the necessary information to help individuals and couples come up with an informed decision and exercise their freedom of choice in managing their families.
Moreso, to effectively articulate our vision into doable programs we are adopting a three-pronged approach to effectively engage our local chambers in implementing specific projects that will cater to the needs of their SMEs and their workers. These approaches consist of advocacy, partnership with NGOs and establishment of service clinics.
These I do believe go hand in hand with the ideals expressed by Cris in articulating PRISM’s vision of seeing business-led interventions on population management.
But our appreciation of population management as to the role of business doesn’t end here. Having a vital function in administering population management activities, we look at the bigger picture that defines our emerging role in this intensive program of advocacy.
This is the reason why as part of our workprogram, we will also be looking at emerging issues on reproductive health such as HIV/AIDS prevalence in the workplace, the alarming high infant and maternal mortality rates, and the underdeveloped healthcare infrastructure in the country. All these call for enhanced interventions that only the private sector can provide supplementing all other programs of government.
We welcome PRISM’s entry to the population management advocacy and service delivery spectrum. Your ideals concretely link the planned interventions we in PCCI have in mind.
It is in this regard that I wish to inform you that we are ready and committed to work hand in hand in ensuring that the efforts we have started years back will not stall and continue to flourish especially in communities where private sector support is most needed.
Once again, thank you very much for this opportunity and good morning to all.
Great Speeches: Induction and General Membership Meeting Speech
On behalf of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), I am honored to be the guest speaker and inducting officer for this year’s induction of officers and board of directors of the Distribution Management Association of the Philippines (DMAP).
The DMAP has always embodied its mission to develop the distribution profession, to participate in the development of government policies and to directly improve each corporate member’s quality of service.
I have always been supportive in DMAP’s cause on lowering the cost of the distribution of goods as well as its contributions to the country’s logistics and distributions systems. For years now, we in the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry have been carrying the torch and rallying on behalf of the business sector through your support in advocating for this cause.
I believe that distribution will always play a viable intermediary role in our country.
The real value of distributors lies on their function as informational intermediaries. A few years ago, a man named Adam Fein of Pembroke Consulting gave a very good interview about strategic planning and distribution management. He stated that many distributors are adopting a new strategic posture that many companies are recognizing that they can “profitably perform many functions that do not necessarily fall into the traditional purview of a distributor.” These functions comprise of activities that focus on delivering value to customers and suppliers. Knowledge about how and when their customers are using their products is significant because we have begun to respect data.
The PCCI has always aimed to help the government and bring about substantial developments in logistics management. One most notable results of PCCI’s intervention in this regard was the Road Roll-On/Roll-Off Terminal System (RRTS), reducing complexity, total distribution and auxiliary costs affecting the costs of goods and doing business in the country.
Highways and ports have been more and more systematized in order to achieve a reliable transport system which in turn, provides better distribution of goods. Furthermore, we at the PCCI have been participating with the government in policy formation, continuing to fulfill the role of being principal advocates of a globally competitive logistics and distribution management.
While efforts are being done and outcomes are being reaped as I speak, I still implore for everyone’s assistance to ensure the success and effectiveness of distribution management process. It is of utter significance that we achieve a solid, multi-sectoral participation and cooperation in coming up with the realization of measures and policies.
The cost of sea transport has been rising in the last decade especially in the last five years. Sea freight increases and cargo handling rate increases contribute to this. Cargo handling rates have been increasing until President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo suspended it in 2002.
The complexity of the current global environment challenges us to more competitive and collaborative to respond the needs and requirements of our stakeholders.
A of change cultural mindset needs to be carried out if we are to eliminate the obstacles that impede our competitiveness potentials. Leadership along with vigilance should exist on the floor. To link vigilance and operational reality, performance measures should be set to hone in on the right activities and help set common goals towards a better performance.
With the aid of your competent leaders, I look forward to your association’s continuing efforts to provide dependable education, innovation, and service to your members. Rest assured that you can count on PCCI’s support in our mutual commitment and goal of attaining sustainable growth and development for our nation.
On our part, we remain committed as a sounding board in economic and governmental affairs that affect the stake of the entire business community and the consuming public. On this note, under my leadership, PCCI will continue to remain active in participating in the preparation of a roadmap to institute key reforms that will allow our country to position itself better among the community of nations.
DMAP deserves much credit for serving as an observer and a doer of justice. By trying to eliminate collusion and corruption within the distribution profession, the Distribution Management of the Philippines continues to be one of the champions of the Filipino people. I look forward to all of us doing our part towards building a stronger logistics and distribution industry by helping each other combat issues and problems hindering our businesses from being fully productive and globally competitive.
Congratulations President Jun Gabrino and the 2005 DMAP Board of Directors and Officers!
The DMAP has always embodied its mission to develop the distribution profession, to participate in the development of government policies and to directly improve each corporate member’s quality of service.
I have always been supportive in DMAP’s cause on lowering the cost of the distribution of goods as well as its contributions to the country’s logistics and distributions systems. For years now, we in the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry have been carrying the torch and rallying on behalf of the business sector through your support in advocating for this cause.
I believe that distribution will always play a viable intermediary role in our country.
The real value of distributors lies on their function as informational intermediaries. A few years ago, a man named Adam Fein of Pembroke Consulting gave a very good interview about strategic planning and distribution management. He stated that many distributors are adopting a new strategic posture that many companies are recognizing that they can “profitably perform many functions that do not necessarily fall into the traditional purview of a distributor.” These functions comprise of activities that focus on delivering value to customers and suppliers. Knowledge about how and when their customers are using their products is significant because we have begun to respect data.
The PCCI has always aimed to help the government and bring about substantial developments in logistics management. One most notable results of PCCI’s intervention in this regard was the Road Roll-On/Roll-Off Terminal System (RRTS), reducing complexity, total distribution and auxiliary costs affecting the costs of goods and doing business in the country.
Highways and ports have been more and more systematized in order to achieve a reliable transport system which in turn, provides better distribution of goods. Furthermore, we at the PCCI have been participating with the government in policy formation, continuing to fulfill the role of being principal advocates of a globally competitive logistics and distribution management.
While efforts are being done and outcomes are being reaped as I speak, I still implore for everyone’s assistance to ensure the success and effectiveness of distribution management process. It is of utter significance that we achieve a solid, multi-sectoral participation and cooperation in coming up with the realization of measures and policies.
The cost of sea transport has been rising in the last decade especially in the last five years. Sea freight increases and cargo handling rate increases contribute to this. Cargo handling rates have been increasing until President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo suspended it in 2002.
The complexity of the current global environment challenges us to more competitive and collaborative to respond the needs and requirements of our stakeholders.
A of change cultural mindset needs to be carried out if we are to eliminate the obstacles that impede our competitiveness potentials. Leadership along with vigilance should exist on the floor. To link vigilance and operational reality, performance measures should be set to hone in on the right activities and help set common goals towards a better performance.
With the aid of your competent leaders, I look forward to your association’s continuing efforts to provide dependable education, innovation, and service to your members. Rest assured that you can count on PCCI’s support in our mutual commitment and goal of attaining sustainable growth and development for our nation.
On our part, we remain committed as a sounding board in economic and governmental affairs that affect the stake of the entire business community and the consuming public. On this note, under my leadership, PCCI will continue to remain active in participating in the preparation of a roadmap to institute key reforms that will allow our country to position itself better among the community of nations.
DMAP deserves much credit for serving as an observer and a doer of justice. By trying to eliminate collusion and corruption within the distribution profession, the Distribution Management of the Philippines continues to be one of the champions of the Filipino people. I look forward to all of us doing our part towards building a stronger logistics and distribution industry by helping each other combat issues and problems hindering our businesses from being fully productive and globally competitive.
Congratulations President Jun Gabrino and the 2005 DMAP Board of Directors and Officers!
Great Speeches: 2005 -General Economic Outlook of the Country and Abroad
Fellow chamber members, good afternoon.
At the outset, allow me to get straight to the core of my presentation – the general economic outlook of the country and abroad.
There is no truth to Persistent rumors that the Philippine economy is at the brink of collapse. The rumors are grossly exaggerated.
The numbers as of the first half of the year say that it continues to grow. The government’s growth forecast for the whole of this year has been adjusted to a range between four and five percent. It is a notch slower than the January forecast ranging from five to six point something percent.
Assuming a low-end growth of just four percent is reached, that will be very far from the brink. A collapse means a recession or shrinking of the economy. We are speaking of a moderate growth of at least four percent despite all the noise in the political arena.
Having said this, allow me to get into the details of my presentation. First is the impact of investments and exports. Let’s start with investments. The Board of Investment (BOI) the other week released through the newspapers the mid-year report on investments and concluded it was a big improvement from last year.
Investments
As expected, foreign direct investments dripped in, in trickles. They have been out of the picture for some time now. The growth was pumped in by local entrepreneurs. BOI’s facts confirm my observation in my visits to chambers from Tuguegarao to Tawi-Tawi that our local businessmen don’t get scared easily by political infighting.
The good news is, local businessmen continue to bet on the future of the economy. They have not chickened out. The lesson must have already sunk in. We, the Filipino businessmen, if we put our collective minds into it, will bring progress and prosperity to our country.
Japanese, American, Chinese and European money may help later. But when the chips are down, we are on our own. When things look rosy again, that’s when foreigners put in their stakes.
Exports
Philippine export in the past decade was the economy’s saving grace. Double-digit growth from 1992 to the year 2000 pushed the export sector from contributing one fifth of the Gross Domestic Product in 1991 to one half of GDP at the turn of the century. In dollar terms, export revenues grew from $9 billion to $38 billion or more than four-fold in 10 years.
A global trade slump in 2001 resulted in export decline of over 15% that year. We fully recovered and posted real growth of $1.5 billion from 2001 figures on sales of $39.5 billion last year.
For the first five months of this year, most of our exports still posted moderate growth but the erratic performance of electronics and semiconductor products due to softer demand in the global market, moderated over-all growth. We have not pared down our target of hitting a 10 percent growth by December.
All things considered, however, especially the continued rise of oil prices in the world market to historic levels, we may miss our target by a few percent.
We are still to push exports to double-digit growth sustained in the 1990s. Its performance had given us a glimpse on what can be achieved if we can coax the entire economy into performing like the rest of East Asia.
Political Economy
Now, let me touch on our weakest link, the relationship between the government and the private sector as both affect economic growth. In our country, it is extremely hard to draw a straight line between the political rulers and the economic elite. At least in Metro Manila and maybe Cebu, the borderlines are clear. But in most provinces, the political rulers and economic elite are one and the same.
The concentration of wealth and political power in the hands of a few hundred families may have been the biggest obstacle to the redistribution of opportunities to improve life in the Philippine countryside.
The situation is not, however, hopeless. The families of Overseas Filipino Workers, better known as OFWs, are slowly changing the economic landscape in rural Philippines. Some are turning into a new breed of entrepreneurs. Some are buying lands from the old, unproductive landed gentry. Others are modernizing Philippine agriculture by bringing in tractors, threshers and other motorized farm implements. In some towns, OFWs are getting elected in municipal government.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has estimated that OFW remittances may hit $12 billion this year. That is more or less P688 billion directly reaching Filipino families this year. Imagine what that kind of money can do if invested wisely.
Global Competitiveness
If we accept the country’s global competitiveness ratings as gospel truth, it is indeed going downhill. But if you find time looking for centers of excellence, you may note that Jollibee is not alone. A new breed of Filipino entrepreneurs like the Hortaleza couple of Splash or the Zesto Juice drink of Alfredo Yao, are proving to be world-class.
Again, don’t forget the OFWs who are coming home. They have proven themselves equal to any other race in their fields of expertise anywhere in the world. Given an even chance to excel in the domestic front, they will again prove equal to the challenge.
This brings me to my latest advocacy. I firmly believe that local governments and the local chambers are capable of creating a favorable climate for business and investment in their home turfs. They can hammer out investment packages and sell those packages to investors elsewhere in the country and abroad. The strategy will disperse industries, jobs and wealth across the archipelago.
If you may recall, former Cebu Governor Lito Osmena did just that for Cebu, selling the province as a tourist and investment haven in the Pacific when the rest of the economy was sinking during the last years of President Marcos. The farther the region or the province is from Manila, the higher is the opportunity of local governments to create a healthy business environment.
Of course, a determined national government can make a difference. It can build modern ports like what the Vietnamese government is doing now. It can cut down red tape in the processing of business related papers. It can run after smugglers, tax evaders and their patrons in government. It can reduce the cost of doing business. It can change policies in keeping with the changing times. It can reform itself into efficient support service machinery. The opportunities are limitless.
Opportunities Abound
In the agriculture and lifestyle sectors, there are still huge opportunities for creative entrepreneurs. I have said many times, that the Philippines is one big greenhouse. However, why is it, that the Philippines still imports sugar, rice, pork, beef, and today, even vegetables and spices -- our most basic food needs?
If you go around Southeast Asia, you will notice immediately, that our cost of living, is higher than most. Indonesians and Thais can have a full meal for P20.00, while our workers cannot. A self-respecting nation, to keep its economic independence, must produce its own food in sufficient quantity. That is the only way, that we can ensure that other nations will not use food supply, as a blackmail weapon against us in times of crisis. The rich nations like Japan, European Union, and the US, knows this only too well. This is obvious in the WTO negotiation, where food subsidies, have become the most critical issue, and where the developed economies, refused to give up the subsidies that they give to their farming sector, even if the rest of the world demands that the practice be stopped. You will recall, that during the Cancun ministerial meeting 3 years ago, the WTO discussions collapsed, because of this issue. It appears, that in the forthcoming Hongkong Senior Ministerial meeting of the WTO, the same will happen again. For the developed countries, food self-sufficiency, is equal to national security.
In the case of the Philippines, the food sector, has been shrinking in the last two and a half decades. Today, it only contributes 15% of the total value of goods and services, or our GDP. And yet, it is in the food sector where 40 million of our people depend on for livelihood. As a result, half of our 83 million people are poor, for they produce so little, and even earn less.
To my mind, the key, is to make farming profitable to the tillers of our soil. Fishing and fish culture must be made a decent source of income for our fishermen. The exploitation of our forest resources, must bring progress to our forest dwellers.
That is not what is happening today, because in our economy, it is the traders that make the large profits, out of the sweat of our farmers and fisher folks, who remain dirt poor. And, who are the traders that I am referring to? If you go around the country, they are the Chinese-Filipino businessmen. This explains why sometimes, they resent us.
It is therefore our duty, as a business leaders and entrepreneurs, to change this impression, and more importantly, to change this distorted trading system. We need not go directly into farming and agriculture, we must however, try to go into the processing of produce coming from the farmers. Your region, a vast agro-industrial area as strategic as Cebu, offers the solution to some of our agriculture mishaps.
Tourism and Investments
Let me also talk about tourism. It is often said, that the Philippines, can become a world-class tourist destination, with white-sand beaches and lush rainforests, and potential mountain resorts and spas, not to mention our very hospitable natives.
Visayas never runs out of these landscapes that offer every tourist, local and foreign alike, the sanctuary to relax and get out from the bustling world of the metropolis. Cebu, recognized by our government as a major tourism hub offers tremendous opportunities for tourism and economic activities to prosper and these be cascaded down to other areas in the region, Guimaras, Ilolilo, Bacolod, Samar and Antique, to name a few.
In making these ideas become parallel to our vision of creating an attractive tourism destination, the other component where there is a great demand for private sector intervention is in the area of tourism investments. And this we have to champion. Until some of us begin to take a more serious look, and gamble at these exotic places, this would be another opportunity lost to us and our nation.
Sunrise Industries
To end with a ray of hope, let us see if we have been developing sunrise industries. The air is full of where and how we have gone bad, most of us don’t bother to look for our redeeming sides, anymore.
Are there silver linings behind the dark clouds? In Metro Manila and other urban centers, the in-thing today are call centers and other business process outsourcing operations or BPOs. Call centers have filled up most of the vacant floors of buildings in Makati and the Ortigas business centers. These are spilling out to Alabang, Quezon City and Subic.
These services companies are cornering the best new graduates by offering starting salary rates much higher than the established corporations. The latest estimate is that, call centers have put up about 60,000 seats, employing close to 100,000 young men and women as of the end of June this year.
BPOs and other information technology enabled services have been slower at growing but a wide variety of services from legal research to medical transcription to accountancy services are sprouting. Official, however, has been slow.
Outside of these high-technology driven industries, I foresee a steady growth of enterprises and new industries that find themselves integrated in the Asia-wide production, supply and distribution chain. Our trade with the rest of Asia is expected to steadily rise as parts of the regional economy are drawn closer to each other.
This has happened in the electronics and automotive industries. As we rediscover our areas of complementation, other industries will find where and how they can get into one bigger chain. I suspect that integration will make a big difference when Asian governments realize the need to put together a regional food supply chain. Host to almost half of the people on earth, Asia has the demand push and fast acquiring the purchasing power to stage a new green revolution.
Keeping the momentum alive
We, in the chamber movement over the years have become the critical catalyst for economic development. In most instances, we have shown and led the way for economic survival and cooperation. In this time of great ordeal that our nation is beset with, we again stand firm as an institution to serve our small constituents with important and key services needed to survive the test of time.
As we do our part, we also need to make those in government realize that they must also clean their acts. That is why we continue to advocate for red tape and corruption in the processing of business papers be decisively checked.
At the national level, we are concentrating on processes at customs, BIR, the DENR and the housing arms of government. If they can make it easier, faster and cheaper to get import and export papers processed, that would go a long way in helping boost our international and domestic trade.
After my appointment as Special Presidential Envoy for Trade Negotiations, PCCI is now active in putting together the private sectors negotiating positions in on-going Free Trade talks with Japan and China, and preparing for forthcoming talks with the United States.
We need to get our acts together in this. We need your inputs. This is the reason that a week after this convention, we are again holding a consultative forum on trade negotiations, where will asking all of you give substance in defining our national position in all trade agreements we are negotiating.
At your level, I strongly suggest that you help us draw what constitute national interest in the economic arena.
As I also suggested to other field chambers, I also encourage you to continue representations with your local government executives in checking red tape in their respective territories. The City of Mandaue is a classic example of a business friendly LGU. Business friendly local governments, by just reducing red-tape to a minimum in the processing of business permits, building permits, clearances and the like, can be of great help in encouraging economic activities at the barangay level.
These things look small. Taken together, they constitute the over-all business climate at the ground level.
We have empowered the five regional PCCI vice presidents including Metro Manila to draw their own plans, programs and projects including their advocacies, when I took office early this year. We have helped fund some those projects like the Business with The Poor pilot projects funded by Senator Kiko Pangilinan.
We sought for help from international development agencies for other programs that qualify for international anti-poverty support. The rest, they implement with resources they generate themselves.
Complementing all these initiatives, in the next few months we will start engaging ourselves in a real MSME development agenda that will provide the base for MSME loan guarantees and minimize the risk of lending to our sector. Through an MSME development center that PCCI will be pioneering, we will be able to service our member MSMEs, and improve the access of these enterprises to various lending facilities both from government and private lending institutions. And in this area, I will need your chamber’s support so we can champion together real and accessible funds for MSME development.
While those in government are still talking about federalization, we, in PCCI, have done it. We believe that the men in the front are in the best position to know and act on the issues, problems and challenges in their own communities.
In capsule, what I have been putting across is this. At this point in our economic development, it is no longer good business sense to wait for the climate to improve. We must take a direct hand in shaping it.
Some courses of action may look too little or too simple. Others may look great. At times, those in government are a burden. In others, they may be valuable partners. But if we are to build an economically healthy nation, a nation that can give decent jobs to all job seeks, we have to do our part.
Ladies and gentlemen, the political climate may look hazy. But the economic climate in our country is not that bad.
We just keep our cool. Do what we do best which is doing business and making investment decisions. Like all storms, man-made or nature born, this too will blow over.
Thank you and good day.
At the outset, allow me to get straight to the core of my presentation – the general economic outlook of the country and abroad.
There is no truth to Persistent rumors that the Philippine economy is at the brink of collapse. The rumors are grossly exaggerated.
The numbers as of the first half of the year say that it continues to grow. The government’s growth forecast for the whole of this year has been adjusted to a range between four and five percent. It is a notch slower than the January forecast ranging from five to six point something percent.
Assuming a low-end growth of just four percent is reached, that will be very far from the brink. A collapse means a recession or shrinking of the economy. We are speaking of a moderate growth of at least four percent despite all the noise in the political arena.
Having said this, allow me to get into the details of my presentation. First is the impact of investments and exports. Let’s start with investments. The Board of Investment (BOI) the other week released through the newspapers the mid-year report on investments and concluded it was a big improvement from last year.
Investments
As expected, foreign direct investments dripped in, in trickles. They have been out of the picture for some time now. The growth was pumped in by local entrepreneurs. BOI’s facts confirm my observation in my visits to chambers from Tuguegarao to Tawi-Tawi that our local businessmen don’t get scared easily by political infighting.
The good news is, local businessmen continue to bet on the future of the economy. They have not chickened out. The lesson must have already sunk in. We, the Filipino businessmen, if we put our collective minds into it, will bring progress and prosperity to our country.
Japanese, American, Chinese and European money may help later. But when the chips are down, we are on our own. When things look rosy again, that’s when foreigners put in their stakes.
Exports
Philippine export in the past decade was the economy’s saving grace. Double-digit growth from 1992 to the year 2000 pushed the export sector from contributing one fifth of the Gross Domestic Product in 1991 to one half of GDP at the turn of the century. In dollar terms, export revenues grew from $9 billion to $38 billion or more than four-fold in 10 years.
A global trade slump in 2001 resulted in export decline of over 15% that year. We fully recovered and posted real growth of $1.5 billion from 2001 figures on sales of $39.5 billion last year.
For the first five months of this year, most of our exports still posted moderate growth but the erratic performance of electronics and semiconductor products due to softer demand in the global market, moderated over-all growth. We have not pared down our target of hitting a 10 percent growth by December.
All things considered, however, especially the continued rise of oil prices in the world market to historic levels, we may miss our target by a few percent.
We are still to push exports to double-digit growth sustained in the 1990s. Its performance had given us a glimpse on what can be achieved if we can coax the entire economy into performing like the rest of East Asia.
Political Economy
Now, let me touch on our weakest link, the relationship between the government and the private sector as both affect economic growth. In our country, it is extremely hard to draw a straight line between the political rulers and the economic elite. At least in Metro Manila and maybe Cebu, the borderlines are clear. But in most provinces, the political rulers and economic elite are one and the same.
The concentration of wealth and political power in the hands of a few hundred families may have been the biggest obstacle to the redistribution of opportunities to improve life in the Philippine countryside.
The situation is not, however, hopeless. The families of Overseas Filipino Workers, better known as OFWs, are slowly changing the economic landscape in rural Philippines. Some are turning into a new breed of entrepreneurs. Some are buying lands from the old, unproductive landed gentry. Others are modernizing Philippine agriculture by bringing in tractors, threshers and other motorized farm implements. In some towns, OFWs are getting elected in municipal government.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has estimated that OFW remittances may hit $12 billion this year. That is more or less P688 billion directly reaching Filipino families this year. Imagine what that kind of money can do if invested wisely.
Global Competitiveness
If we accept the country’s global competitiveness ratings as gospel truth, it is indeed going downhill. But if you find time looking for centers of excellence, you may note that Jollibee is not alone. A new breed of Filipino entrepreneurs like the Hortaleza couple of Splash or the Zesto Juice drink of Alfredo Yao, are proving to be world-class.
Again, don’t forget the OFWs who are coming home. They have proven themselves equal to any other race in their fields of expertise anywhere in the world. Given an even chance to excel in the domestic front, they will again prove equal to the challenge.
This brings me to my latest advocacy. I firmly believe that local governments and the local chambers are capable of creating a favorable climate for business and investment in their home turfs. They can hammer out investment packages and sell those packages to investors elsewhere in the country and abroad. The strategy will disperse industries, jobs and wealth across the archipelago.
If you may recall, former Cebu Governor Lito Osmena did just that for Cebu, selling the province as a tourist and investment haven in the Pacific when the rest of the economy was sinking during the last years of President Marcos. The farther the region or the province is from Manila, the higher is the opportunity of local governments to create a healthy business environment.
Of course, a determined national government can make a difference. It can build modern ports like what the Vietnamese government is doing now. It can cut down red tape in the processing of business related papers. It can run after smugglers, tax evaders and their patrons in government. It can reduce the cost of doing business. It can change policies in keeping with the changing times. It can reform itself into efficient support service machinery. The opportunities are limitless.
Opportunities Abound
In the agriculture and lifestyle sectors, there are still huge opportunities for creative entrepreneurs. I have said many times, that the Philippines is one big greenhouse. However, why is it, that the Philippines still imports sugar, rice, pork, beef, and today, even vegetables and spices -- our most basic food needs?
If you go around Southeast Asia, you will notice immediately, that our cost of living, is higher than most. Indonesians and Thais can have a full meal for P20.00, while our workers cannot. A self-respecting nation, to keep its economic independence, must produce its own food in sufficient quantity. That is the only way, that we can ensure that other nations will not use food supply, as a blackmail weapon against us in times of crisis. The rich nations like Japan, European Union, and the US, knows this only too well. This is obvious in the WTO negotiation, where food subsidies, have become the most critical issue, and where the developed economies, refused to give up the subsidies that they give to their farming sector, even if the rest of the world demands that the practice be stopped. You will recall, that during the Cancun ministerial meeting 3 years ago, the WTO discussions collapsed, because of this issue. It appears, that in the forthcoming Hongkong Senior Ministerial meeting of the WTO, the same will happen again. For the developed countries, food self-sufficiency, is equal to national security.
In the case of the Philippines, the food sector, has been shrinking in the last two and a half decades. Today, it only contributes 15% of the total value of goods and services, or our GDP. And yet, it is in the food sector where 40 million of our people depend on for livelihood. As a result, half of our 83 million people are poor, for they produce so little, and even earn less.
To my mind, the key, is to make farming profitable to the tillers of our soil. Fishing and fish culture must be made a decent source of income for our fishermen. The exploitation of our forest resources, must bring progress to our forest dwellers.
That is not what is happening today, because in our economy, it is the traders that make the large profits, out of the sweat of our farmers and fisher folks, who remain dirt poor. And, who are the traders that I am referring to? If you go around the country, they are the Chinese-Filipino businessmen. This explains why sometimes, they resent us.
It is therefore our duty, as a business leaders and entrepreneurs, to change this impression, and more importantly, to change this distorted trading system. We need not go directly into farming and agriculture, we must however, try to go into the processing of produce coming from the farmers. Your region, a vast agro-industrial area as strategic as Cebu, offers the solution to some of our agriculture mishaps.
Tourism and Investments
Let me also talk about tourism. It is often said, that the Philippines, can become a world-class tourist destination, with white-sand beaches and lush rainforests, and potential mountain resorts and spas, not to mention our very hospitable natives.
Visayas never runs out of these landscapes that offer every tourist, local and foreign alike, the sanctuary to relax and get out from the bustling world of the metropolis. Cebu, recognized by our government as a major tourism hub offers tremendous opportunities for tourism and economic activities to prosper and these be cascaded down to other areas in the region, Guimaras, Ilolilo, Bacolod, Samar and Antique, to name a few.
In making these ideas become parallel to our vision of creating an attractive tourism destination, the other component where there is a great demand for private sector intervention is in the area of tourism investments. And this we have to champion. Until some of us begin to take a more serious look, and gamble at these exotic places, this would be another opportunity lost to us and our nation.
Sunrise Industries
To end with a ray of hope, let us see if we have been developing sunrise industries. The air is full of where and how we have gone bad, most of us don’t bother to look for our redeeming sides, anymore.
Are there silver linings behind the dark clouds? In Metro Manila and other urban centers, the in-thing today are call centers and other business process outsourcing operations or BPOs. Call centers have filled up most of the vacant floors of buildings in Makati and the Ortigas business centers. These are spilling out to Alabang, Quezon City and Subic.
These services companies are cornering the best new graduates by offering starting salary rates much higher than the established corporations. The latest estimate is that, call centers have put up about 60,000 seats, employing close to 100,000 young men and women as of the end of June this year.
BPOs and other information technology enabled services have been slower at growing but a wide variety of services from legal research to medical transcription to accountancy services are sprouting. Official, however, has been slow.
Outside of these high-technology driven industries, I foresee a steady growth of enterprises and new industries that find themselves integrated in the Asia-wide production, supply and distribution chain. Our trade with the rest of Asia is expected to steadily rise as parts of the regional economy are drawn closer to each other.
This has happened in the electronics and automotive industries. As we rediscover our areas of complementation, other industries will find where and how they can get into one bigger chain. I suspect that integration will make a big difference when Asian governments realize the need to put together a regional food supply chain. Host to almost half of the people on earth, Asia has the demand push and fast acquiring the purchasing power to stage a new green revolution.
Keeping the momentum alive
We, in the chamber movement over the years have become the critical catalyst for economic development. In most instances, we have shown and led the way for economic survival and cooperation. In this time of great ordeal that our nation is beset with, we again stand firm as an institution to serve our small constituents with important and key services needed to survive the test of time.
As we do our part, we also need to make those in government realize that they must also clean their acts. That is why we continue to advocate for red tape and corruption in the processing of business papers be decisively checked.
At the national level, we are concentrating on processes at customs, BIR, the DENR and the housing arms of government. If they can make it easier, faster and cheaper to get import and export papers processed, that would go a long way in helping boost our international and domestic trade.
After my appointment as Special Presidential Envoy for Trade Negotiations, PCCI is now active in putting together the private sectors negotiating positions in on-going Free Trade talks with Japan and China, and preparing for forthcoming talks with the United States.
We need to get our acts together in this. We need your inputs. This is the reason that a week after this convention, we are again holding a consultative forum on trade negotiations, where will asking all of you give substance in defining our national position in all trade agreements we are negotiating.
At your level, I strongly suggest that you help us draw what constitute national interest in the economic arena.
As I also suggested to other field chambers, I also encourage you to continue representations with your local government executives in checking red tape in their respective territories. The City of Mandaue is a classic example of a business friendly LGU. Business friendly local governments, by just reducing red-tape to a minimum in the processing of business permits, building permits, clearances and the like, can be of great help in encouraging economic activities at the barangay level.
These things look small. Taken together, they constitute the over-all business climate at the ground level.
We have empowered the five regional PCCI vice presidents including Metro Manila to draw their own plans, programs and projects including their advocacies, when I took office early this year. We have helped fund some those projects like the Business with The Poor pilot projects funded by Senator Kiko Pangilinan.
We sought for help from international development agencies for other programs that qualify for international anti-poverty support. The rest, they implement with resources they generate themselves.
Complementing all these initiatives, in the next few months we will start engaging ourselves in a real MSME development agenda that will provide the base for MSME loan guarantees and minimize the risk of lending to our sector. Through an MSME development center that PCCI will be pioneering, we will be able to service our member MSMEs, and improve the access of these enterprises to various lending facilities both from government and private lending institutions. And in this area, I will need your chamber’s support so we can champion together real and accessible funds for MSME development.
While those in government are still talking about federalization, we, in PCCI, have done it. We believe that the men in the front are in the best position to know and act on the issues, problems and challenges in their own communities.
In capsule, what I have been putting across is this. At this point in our economic development, it is no longer good business sense to wait for the climate to improve. We must take a direct hand in shaping it.
Some courses of action may look too little or too simple. Others may look great. At times, those in government are a burden. In others, they may be valuable partners. But if we are to build an economically healthy nation, a nation that can give decent jobs to all job seeks, we have to do our part.
Ladies and gentlemen, the political climate may look hazy. But the economic climate in our country is not that bad.
We just keep our cool. Do what we do best which is doing business and making investment decisions. Like all storms, man-made or nature born, this too will blow over.
Thank you and good day.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Great Speeches: MOA Signing
HIS EXCELLENCY PETER BECKINGHAM, AMBASSADOR OF THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT TO THE PHILIPPINES;
DISTINGUISHED GUESTS, FRIENDS, LADIES, AND GENTLEMEN, GOOD AFTERNOON!
I AM PERSONALLY DELIGHTED TO WELCOME ALL OF YOU TODAY IN THIS IMPORTANT OCCASION.
ON BEHALF OF THE PHILIPPINE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (PCCI), I WISH TO EXPRESS MY SINCEREST GRATITUDE TO ALL THE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE U-ACT AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT FOR UNDERTAKING THE INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE MULTI-STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION FOR TRADE (I-MUST FOR TRADE) PROJECT.
THE MOA THAT WILL BE SIGNED TODAY BETWEEN THE U-ACT, THE PCCI, AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT SIGNALS HOW WORKING TOGETHER CAN HELP US REALIZE OUR GOALS TOWARDS MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF A CHANGED GLOBAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT.
SINCE THE 1990S, GLOBALIZATION HAS BROUGHT SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE TRADE POLICY AGENDA OF ALL NATIONS. THERE HAS BEEN A SHIFT FROM CONCERNS WITH PROTECTION AT THE BORDER TO MORE COMPLEX ISSUES SUCH AS ENVIRONMENT, LABOR, RULES OF ORIGIN, TRADE FACILITATION, IPR, AND, MORE RECENTLY, THE PROLIFERATION OF BI-LATERALS AND MULTILATERALS.
IT IS NOT SURPRISING, THEREFORE, THAT THE NEW TRADE ENVIRONMENT HAS TRANSFORMED THE DYNAMICS OF TRADE POLICIES AS WELL AS TRADE NEGOTIATIONS. TRADE POLICIES MOVED FROM THE TRADITIONAL CLOSED CLUB MODEL DOMINATED BY A FEW TO A MORE OPEN MULTI-STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WITH REPRESENTATIONS FROM DIFFERENT SEGMENTS OF THE SOCIETY.
WITH THE MOA SIGNING TODAY, I WISH TO COMMEND U-ACT AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT FOR FORGING THIS PARTNERSHIP TO CREATE A PLATFORM FOR THE MULTI-STAKEHOLDERS IN PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY TO THE TRADE POLICY DECISION-MAKING. THIS PROJECT WILL DEFINITELY EMPOWER THE STAKEHOLDERS BY GIVING THEM A CENTRAL ROLE AND INVOLVING THEM IN THE WHOLE PROCESS OF TRADE POLICY FORMULATION.
THE MOA TO BE SIGNED TODAY SIGNALS THE FIRST AND SERIOUS STEP TOWARDS AN ENHANCED AND ENLIGHTENED TRADE NEGOTIATION.
AND I TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU ALL TO THE LAUNCHING OF THE I-MUST FOR TRADE PROJECT.
THANK YOU AND MABUHAY PO TAYONG LAHAT.
DISTINGUISHED GUESTS, FRIENDS, LADIES, AND GENTLEMEN, GOOD AFTERNOON!
I AM PERSONALLY DELIGHTED TO WELCOME ALL OF YOU TODAY IN THIS IMPORTANT OCCASION.
ON BEHALF OF THE PHILIPPINE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (PCCI), I WISH TO EXPRESS MY SINCEREST GRATITUDE TO ALL THE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE U-ACT AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT FOR UNDERTAKING THE INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE MULTI-STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION FOR TRADE (I-MUST FOR TRADE) PROJECT.
THE MOA THAT WILL BE SIGNED TODAY BETWEEN THE U-ACT, THE PCCI, AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT SIGNALS HOW WORKING TOGETHER CAN HELP US REALIZE OUR GOALS TOWARDS MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF A CHANGED GLOBAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT.
SINCE THE 1990S, GLOBALIZATION HAS BROUGHT SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE TRADE POLICY AGENDA OF ALL NATIONS. THERE HAS BEEN A SHIFT FROM CONCERNS WITH PROTECTION AT THE BORDER TO MORE COMPLEX ISSUES SUCH AS ENVIRONMENT, LABOR, RULES OF ORIGIN, TRADE FACILITATION, IPR, AND, MORE RECENTLY, THE PROLIFERATION OF BI-LATERALS AND MULTILATERALS.
IT IS NOT SURPRISING, THEREFORE, THAT THE NEW TRADE ENVIRONMENT HAS TRANSFORMED THE DYNAMICS OF TRADE POLICIES AS WELL AS TRADE NEGOTIATIONS. TRADE POLICIES MOVED FROM THE TRADITIONAL CLOSED CLUB MODEL DOMINATED BY A FEW TO A MORE OPEN MULTI-STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WITH REPRESENTATIONS FROM DIFFERENT SEGMENTS OF THE SOCIETY.
WITH THE MOA SIGNING TODAY, I WISH TO COMMEND U-ACT AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT FOR FORGING THIS PARTNERSHIP TO CREATE A PLATFORM FOR THE MULTI-STAKEHOLDERS IN PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY TO THE TRADE POLICY DECISION-MAKING. THIS PROJECT WILL DEFINITELY EMPOWER THE STAKEHOLDERS BY GIVING THEM A CENTRAL ROLE AND INVOLVING THEM IN THE WHOLE PROCESS OF TRADE POLICY FORMULATION.
THE MOA TO BE SIGNED TODAY SIGNALS THE FIRST AND SERIOUS STEP TOWARDS AN ENHANCED AND ENLIGHTENED TRADE NEGOTIATION.
AND I TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO WELCOME YOU ALL TO THE LAUNCHING OF THE I-MUST FOR TRADE PROJECT.
THANK YOU AND MABUHAY PO TAYONG LAHAT.
Great Speeches: On Competitiveness
Let me begin by thanking and congratulating Tom Aquino, Cesar Bautista and Bobby Romulo, together with Peter and Pooch Macaranas for the very successful organization of this summit.
And to all of you good morning!
We are all here today because we recognize one very important fact: the world is moving at breakneck speed and we must compete or get left behind.
On a macro level, we know political instability and weak fundamentals have historically undermined our ability to compete. At the microeconomic level, under investment in infrastructure, too much red tape and too many opportunities for corruption, among others, all add to the cost of doing business.
This is why at the beginning of our administration, we placed priority on strengthening our economic fundamentals. Since then many areas have dramatically improved, notably revenue generation, solid fiscal stability and a new round of government investment in infrastructure. Jobs are being created and investment is coming in at a good clip.
Inflation is now at its lowest in recent years, signaling payback time for our people. Our resolve to implement tough reforms and the resilience of the people to surmount every crisis and challenge have paved the way for a stronger economy ready for take off. Political and economic stability are held up by a confident market driven by good governance, free enterprise and social justice. What we've been achieving now is a tribute to the Filipino spirit that has remained unswervingly focused on going for the gold in every field of enterprise and excellence.
Having said that however, as we've all agreed and as Tom presented, we all agree that there is still much to do.
Now, we must also pay greater attention to those factors that affect productivity and the cost of doing business which impact on your ability to compete on a level playing field without need of artificial measures like subsidies and protection to cover up for our deficiencies.
This competitiveness summit is about taking the challenge head on and proving to ourselves, our nation and the world that the Philippines means business.
We need to improve our infrastructure and our regulatory regime so that goods and people move cheaply and freely by road, rail, sea or air and have access to cheap power and world class telecommunications.
And human resources must be on the frontline of our competitive comeback, and nothing is more important than the health of our children and a quality education. And at no time in our history has the need for improved technical, engineering and science skills ever been more important. And never has the mastery of the english language been more important to our national well-being.
And all of these actions are not just pipe dreams -- we can make them happen.
Just over a month ago we held a BPO strategic planning session in Cebu. Five years ago, BPO and call centers barely existed. You could count the jobs on a few hands -- less than 2,000 of them. Today, we could pack several stadiums full of the 200,000 Filipino workers who earn a proud and rewarding living in the call center and BPO industry.
The team of professionals and experts that advised me in Cebu believes this industry can produce an increasing numbers of jobs -- half a million or more -- and help solidify our position as one of the best places to do business in the world.
In the BPO space, we aim to forge ahead and invest in our future to become a genuine world leader. I was delighted to learn from Polly Nazareno of PLDT that the Business Process Association of the Philippines or BPAP has initiated a program to strengthen itself to be on par with its powerful peer group, NASSCOM in India. In fact, BPAP and NASSCOM have announced a new MOU to increase coordination and cooperation between the two entities. This MOU combined with BPAP's own private-public sector partnership to bring the BPO industry to the next level here in the Philippines is something to be proud of.
I mention the BPO industry because very few places in the world can you expect an industry to grow one hundred times in five years. But there are other industries that have been having their own share of public-private sector partnership.
The SEIPI, the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines has its own public-private sector initiative. With DOST, it supports 60 MS and PHD students to enable the industry also to move up the value chain the way we're trying to do it with BPO. And with PEZA, SEIPI developed the advance research and competency development institute which caters to the continuous training and education of the industry's workers.
In the automotive industry, more local assemblers, I hope, will be able to join the automotive exports program. They are expecting more assemblers to join this program once the BOI expands the program to allow low-volume but high-value exports of completely built-up units. Because right now, only Ford Motor Philippines has been able to avail of the program because of the large volume requirements.
And another thing we can look forward to is the manufacture of flexible-fuel vehicles. This certainly requires private-public sector partnership. In fact not only in the Philippines but in the region.
When I spoke in the ASEAN-European Summit in Helsinki, I was the speaker on energy and we talked about flexible fuels. We talked about the vehicles that can handle flexible fuels. And of course to be able to have Ford, for instance, have enough volume to produce, the different countries must have the same fuel standards of combination of the blends. So that really requires private and public sector partnership.
Going back to the BPO, we made a difference because government and business worked together to provide the business environment through incentives and the technology backbone through strategic investment to make us globally competitive. We're trying to do that with SEIPI, with the automotive industry. And with the same determination, we will build our logistic hubs, liberalize our skies, grow our medical tourism industry -- mentioned in Tom Aquino's presentation -- expand our export manufacturing base and become value-added providers of agricultural products to the region and the world.
I thank you for the commitment from the private sector that Donald handed me, and on the part of the government, we pledge to you today the political will to keep our economy on track, our budget on plan, and our government focused on becoming more business friendly.
On the part of the legislature, let's all hope they can pledge the same unwavering support to pass the necessary legislation. Junie Cua, the chairman of trade and industry of Congress, has certainly been doing his part.
The private sector creates the jobs; you are the engine of economic growth. Our job in government is to help invest in the people and institutions of government, to give our citizens the tools they need to compete and win in the global economy. And we want to thank all the government and business stakeholders that are participating in this summit consultation process.
I understand from Peter that over three dozen recommendations have been put forth today by our joint public-private task force on competitiveness. Each and every recommendation must move forward. No action is too small, no aspiration too big, if it will help catapult us to higher performance.
To that end, we hope this summit ushers in a new day of renewed coordination between the best and the brightest of our business community and our government leaders. We need a fast start and tough but achievable goals to jumpstart our efforts.
I remember when I was in the Department of Trade and Industry at the time when Raul Boncan was my boss, he would tell us in planning: "If you're going to put something that you can easily achieve, that's not tough, that's not a target, that's a projection. So what you have... A target is something that is tough but achievable." And that I think is what we are aiming to do today.
For my part today I'd like to announce what we've done so far. An administrative order institutionalizing quality management system in government; a memorandum order directing all departments, bureaus, commissions, agencies, offices and instrumentalities of the national government to improve transaction costs and flows in order to enhance Philippine competitiveness; a memorandum directing DOTC to provide seamless infrastructure networks to enhance Philippine competitiveness; a memorandum directing DOE, PNOC and NPC to lower the cost of and ensure self-sufficiency in energy to enhance Philippine competitiveness; and a memorandum directing DEPED, CHED and TESDA to develop programs to improve the student proficiency in English, Science and Math in order to enhance Philippine competitiveness. This is the start of a unified national campaign to bring us together around a common goal: to accelerate development, investment and growth.
Of the three dozen or more recommendations, as they were being reported to me by Tom as the consultations were progressing, I want to highlight three today:
One, a recommendation to the league of city mayors to set a target that 50 percent of them will be ISO certified within the next two years. Cooperation of the league. This initiative will bring down the barriers of red tape, increase government efficiency and opening up the door to doing business more easily at the local level where jobs and wealth need to be created.
Second, by 2010, we want prioritization of Math, Science and English in our schools -- actually, we've done that. But this is the additional tough one, by 2010, a 30 percent improvement in English by all high school seniors.
Third, we want three times more investment by government and business in strategic infrastructure in the year 2007. Well, now we can do it because we have the money on the government side, and you've shortened my list, my SONA list to 20 priority projects. And if we cut down on red tape and do all the things needed for competitiveness, then the private sector can very well participate in building this infrastructure by 2007.
We need this infrastructure. Our people form the competitive core of our natural resources and modern, world class infrastructure forms the backbone.
Aside from these three important recommendations that I digested from the summaries that Tom Aquino was reporting to us periodically, additionally, I would like to acknowledge, the number one recommendation of the foreign chambers yesterday and that is regarding constitutional and legal restrictions on foreign direct investments.
But today's summit is not a one-time event. It's a continuing process. In this regard, I have signed an executive order creating a task force on Philippine competitiveness. This task force, including the secretariat, should be composed of representatives from both the public and the private sector. Their job will be to make sure that our resolutions in this summit will be carried out over the years until the end of our administration.
And so given that this is a continuing job, let me end by saying that in this continuing process of achieving competitiveness, this President is always willing to listen to new ideas and new ways of doing things.
Thank you.
We are that our drive to become one of the best is not without risks and consequences. Just recently,
And to all of you good morning!
We are all here today because we recognize one very important fact: the world is moving at breakneck speed and we must compete or get left behind.
On a macro level, we know political instability and weak fundamentals have historically undermined our ability to compete. At the microeconomic level, under investment in infrastructure, too much red tape and too many opportunities for corruption, among others, all add to the cost of doing business.
This is why at the beginning of our administration, we placed priority on strengthening our economic fundamentals. Since then many areas have dramatically improved, notably revenue generation, solid fiscal stability and a new round of government investment in infrastructure. Jobs are being created and investment is coming in at a good clip.
Inflation is now at its lowest in recent years, signaling payback time for our people. Our resolve to implement tough reforms and the resilience of the people to surmount every crisis and challenge have paved the way for a stronger economy ready for take off. Political and economic stability are held up by a confident market driven by good governance, free enterprise and social justice. What we've been achieving now is a tribute to the Filipino spirit that has remained unswervingly focused on going for the gold in every field of enterprise and excellence.
Having said that however, as we've all agreed and as Tom presented, we all agree that there is still much to do.
Now, we must also pay greater attention to those factors that affect productivity and the cost of doing business which impact on your ability to compete on a level playing field without need of artificial measures like subsidies and protection to cover up for our deficiencies.
This competitiveness summit is about taking the challenge head on and proving to ourselves, our nation and the world that the Philippines means business.
We need to improve our infrastructure and our regulatory regime so that goods and people move cheaply and freely by road, rail, sea or air and have access to cheap power and world class telecommunications.
And human resources must be on the frontline of our competitive comeback, and nothing is more important than the health of our children and a quality education. And at no time in our history has the need for improved technical, engineering and science skills ever been more important. And never has the mastery of the english language been more important to our national well-being.
And all of these actions are not just pipe dreams -- we can make them happen.
Just over a month ago we held a BPO strategic planning session in Cebu. Five years ago, BPO and call centers barely existed. You could count the jobs on a few hands -- less than 2,000 of them. Today, we could pack several stadiums full of the 200,000 Filipino workers who earn a proud and rewarding living in the call center and BPO industry.
The team of professionals and experts that advised me in Cebu believes this industry can produce an increasing numbers of jobs -- half a million or more -- and help solidify our position as one of the best places to do business in the world.
In the BPO space, we aim to forge ahead and invest in our future to become a genuine world leader. I was delighted to learn from Polly Nazareno of PLDT that the Business Process Association of the Philippines or BPAP has initiated a program to strengthen itself to be on par with its powerful peer group, NASSCOM in India. In fact, BPAP and NASSCOM have announced a new MOU to increase coordination and cooperation between the two entities. This MOU combined with BPAP's own private-public sector partnership to bring the BPO industry to the next level here in the Philippines is something to be proud of.
I mention the BPO industry because very few places in the world can you expect an industry to grow one hundred times in five years. But there are other industries that have been having their own share of public-private sector partnership.
The SEIPI, the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines has its own public-private sector initiative. With DOST, it supports 60 MS and PHD students to enable the industry also to move up the value chain the way we're trying to do it with BPO. And with PEZA, SEIPI developed the advance research and competency development institute which caters to the continuous training and education of the industry's workers.
In the automotive industry, more local assemblers, I hope, will be able to join the automotive exports program. They are expecting more assemblers to join this program once the BOI expands the program to allow low-volume but high-value exports of completely built-up units. Because right now, only Ford Motor Philippines has been able to avail of the program because of the large volume requirements.
And another thing we can look forward to is the manufacture of flexible-fuel vehicles. This certainly requires private-public sector partnership. In fact not only in the Philippines but in the region.
When I spoke in the ASEAN-European Summit in Helsinki, I was the speaker on energy and we talked about flexible fuels. We talked about the vehicles that can handle flexible fuels. And of course to be able to have Ford, for instance, have enough volume to produce, the different countries must have the same fuel standards of combination of the blends. So that really requires private and public sector partnership.
Going back to the BPO, we made a difference because government and business worked together to provide the business environment through incentives and the technology backbone through strategic investment to make us globally competitive. We're trying to do that with SEIPI, with the automotive industry. And with the same determination, we will build our logistic hubs, liberalize our skies, grow our medical tourism industry -- mentioned in Tom Aquino's presentation -- expand our export manufacturing base and become value-added providers of agricultural products to the region and the world.
I thank you for the commitment from the private sector that Donald handed me, and on the part of the government, we pledge to you today the political will to keep our economy on track, our budget on plan, and our government focused on becoming more business friendly.
On the part of the legislature, let's all hope they can pledge the same unwavering support to pass the necessary legislation. Junie Cua, the chairman of trade and industry of Congress, has certainly been doing his part.
The private sector creates the jobs; you are the engine of economic growth. Our job in government is to help invest in the people and institutions of government, to give our citizens the tools they need to compete and win in the global economy. And we want to thank all the government and business stakeholders that are participating in this summit consultation process.
I understand from Peter that over three dozen recommendations have been put forth today by our joint public-private task force on competitiveness. Each and every recommendation must move forward. No action is too small, no aspiration too big, if it will help catapult us to higher performance.
To that end, we hope this summit ushers in a new day of renewed coordination between the best and the brightest of our business community and our government leaders. We need a fast start and tough but achievable goals to jumpstart our efforts.
I remember when I was in the Department of Trade and Industry at the time when Raul Boncan was my boss, he would tell us in planning: "If you're going to put something that you can easily achieve, that's not tough, that's not a target, that's a projection. So what you have... A target is something that is tough but achievable." And that I think is what we are aiming to do today.
For my part today I'd like to announce what we've done so far. An administrative order institutionalizing quality management system in government; a memorandum order directing all departments, bureaus, commissions, agencies, offices and instrumentalities of the national government to improve transaction costs and flows in order to enhance Philippine competitiveness; a memorandum directing DOTC to provide seamless infrastructure networks to enhance Philippine competitiveness; a memorandum directing DOE, PNOC and NPC to lower the cost of and ensure self-sufficiency in energy to enhance Philippine competitiveness; and a memorandum directing DEPED, CHED and TESDA to develop programs to improve the student proficiency in English, Science and Math in order to enhance Philippine competitiveness. This is the start of a unified national campaign to bring us together around a common goal: to accelerate development, investment and growth.
Of the three dozen or more recommendations, as they were being reported to me by Tom as the consultations were progressing, I want to highlight three today:
One, a recommendation to the league of city mayors to set a target that 50 percent of them will be ISO certified within the next two years. Cooperation of the league. This initiative will bring down the barriers of red tape, increase government efficiency and opening up the door to doing business more easily at the local level where jobs and wealth need to be created.
Second, by 2010, we want prioritization of Math, Science and English in our schools -- actually, we've done that. But this is the additional tough one, by 2010, a 30 percent improvement in English by all high school seniors.
Third, we want three times more investment by government and business in strategic infrastructure in the year 2007. Well, now we can do it because we have the money on the government side, and you've shortened my list, my SONA list to 20 priority projects. And if we cut down on red tape and do all the things needed for competitiveness, then the private sector can very well participate in building this infrastructure by 2007.
We need this infrastructure. Our people form the competitive core of our natural resources and modern, world class infrastructure forms the backbone.
Aside from these three important recommendations that I digested from the summaries that Tom Aquino was reporting to us periodically, additionally, I would like to acknowledge, the number one recommendation of the foreign chambers yesterday and that is regarding constitutional and legal restrictions on foreign direct investments.
But today's summit is not a one-time event. It's a continuing process. In this regard, I have signed an executive order creating a task force on Philippine competitiveness. This task force, including the secretariat, should be composed of representatives from both the public and the private sector. Their job will be to make sure that our resolutions in this summit will be carried out over the years until the end of our administration.
And so given that this is a continuing job, let me end by saying that in this continuing process of achieving competitiveness, this President is always willing to listen to new ideas and new ways of doing things.
Thank you.
We are that our drive to become one of the best is not without risks and consequences. Just recently,
Great Speeches: OVERVIEW OF WORLD TRADE
We have experienced a drastic change in trade and investments in 10 short years since the birth of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995. Trade in this highly liberalized and competitive world is fast moving. While in the past, we were only focused on WTO and ASEAN issues, now, we need to also pay attention to various FTAs, that have sprouted like mushrooms around the world.
What happened teaches us valuable lessons. We have come to realize that in the economic front, nations cannot remain islands upon themselves. The reality of interdependence has even been clearer between neighboring countries in every continent.
Under the new environment, we witnessed Europe consolidate its economic might by forming the European Union, and creating its regional currency, the Euro. In the Americas, the United States initiated the formation of the North American Free Trade Area (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico and is further expanding the trade bloc to include nations in Central and South America.
In response, members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) transformed themselves into an economic alliance now known as the ASEAN Free Trade Area or AFTA. A logical follow-up move forward was for ASEAN to reach out to China, Japan, South Korea and other economies in South Asia.
If I were to sum up in one word the most positive effect the liberalization process bestowed on nations taking into consideration an equal playing field for all is in existence – it would be the proliferation of competitiveness, imbedded not only in the firm level but also in governance and policy making.
PHILIPPINES’ LINGERING COMPETITIVENESS STRIDES
According to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) 2005 Global Competitiveness Report, the Philippines ranks far below our neighbors in Southeast Asia – Indonesia, India, Thailand and Malaysia, in terms of competitiveness. Using public sector, business environment, technology and macroeconomic environment competitiveness as benchmarks and indicators of a nation’s competitiveness performance in this annual competitiveness survey, we belong in the bottom half of the field, at 77th place out of 117 nations, one place lower from our 2004 rank of 76.
Technology seems to be our strongest competitiveness edge where we are ranked 54th out of 117. However, if we are to benchmark our performance with that of Thailand and Malaysia, it will still appear dismal since the two are in 43rd and 25th, respectively.
What is even more alarming is our ranking on public institutions’ competitiveness index, where we are at a low 104th slot out of 117. Indonesia, known in the ASEAN region for relatively inefficient public sector institutions even ranks higher at 89.
You see, these figures offer us points to ponder in redefining our policies towards economic integration or globalization.
But, we are not on the loosing end. Time and again, we have proven that resiliency is our best friend in times of great ordeals. Last year, our domestic economy posted a modest 4.7% expansion amidst intense political bickering and standoffs we experienced at the second half of year. Both the peso and stock markets have been regarded as one of the strongest currency and trading bourse both in Asia and the world. And our OFWs continue to provide some US$ 9 billion worth of remittances that continue to pump-prime our economy. Domestic consumption has been relatively stable to moderately high, even with the E-VAT implementation and increasing prices of petroleum. Investments have started to plow back into the economy in key sunrise industries – tourism, call centers and other BPOs, transportation and communications. The good “vibes” so as the crystal ball readers might say are well in tact, we just need to find a way to continue with the momentum.
FILIPINO BUSINESSMEN AND LOCAL COMPETITIVENESS
Where does business stand in the competitiveness drive? First, I must point out that local businessmen continue to bet on the future of our economy. We have not chickened out. The Filipino businessmen, if we put our collective minds into it, will bring progress and prosperity to our country.
To end with a ray of hope, let us see if we have been developing sunrise industries. The air is full of where and how we have gone bad, most of us don’t bother to look for our redeeming sides, anymore.
I foresee a steady growth of enterprises and new industries that find themselves integrated in the Asia-wide production, supply and distribution chain. Our trade with the rest of Asia is expected to steadily rise as parts of the regional economy are drawn closer to each other.
We, in the chamber movement over the years have become the critical catalyst for economic development. In most instances, we have shown and led the way for economic survival and cooperation. In this time of great ordeal that our nation is beset with, we again stand firm as an institution to serve our small constituents with important and key services needed to survive the test of time.
I believe that the greatest thing in this world is not so much where we are, but in what direction we are moving. Unless you set big, worthwhile goals, you’ll never move beyond your current abilities. You, as the forthcoming association of business leaders engaged in international trade policy, have the power to calibrate the engine for economic growth and ensure our competitiveness advantage stands tall internationally.
We have learned from the past, and the present is our platform for the future. This year I encourage the Chamber of International Trade to continue and complete the projects that will make our country more competitive. I am convinced that you have the management and staff, the enthusiasm, the pride, and the skills for the opportunities that lie ahead. I look forward to your active engagement in the activities of PCCI.
Thank you and a pleasant day to all.
What happened teaches us valuable lessons. We have come to realize that in the economic front, nations cannot remain islands upon themselves. The reality of interdependence has even been clearer between neighboring countries in every continent.
Under the new environment, we witnessed Europe consolidate its economic might by forming the European Union, and creating its regional currency, the Euro. In the Americas, the United States initiated the formation of the North American Free Trade Area (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico and is further expanding the trade bloc to include nations in Central and South America.
In response, members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) transformed themselves into an economic alliance now known as the ASEAN Free Trade Area or AFTA. A logical follow-up move forward was for ASEAN to reach out to China, Japan, South Korea and other economies in South Asia.
If I were to sum up in one word the most positive effect the liberalization process bestowed on nations taking into consideration an equal playing field for all is in existence – it would be the proliferation of competitiveness, imbedded not only in the firm level but also in governance and policy making.
PHILIPPINES’ LINGERING COMPETITIVENESS STRIDES
According to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) 2005 Global Competitiveness Report, the Philippines ranks far below our neighbors in Southeast Asia – Indonesia, India, Thailand and Malaysia, in terms of competitiveness. Using public sector, business environment, technology and macroeconomic environment competitiveness as benchmarks and indicators of a nation’s competitiveness performance in this annual competitiveness survey, we belong in the bottom half of the field, at 77th place out of 117 nations, one place lower from our 2004 rank of 76.
Technology seems to be our strongest competitiveness edge where we are ranked 54th out of 117. However, if we are to benchmark our performance with that of Thailand and Malaysia, it will still appear dismal since the two are in 43rd and 25th, respectively.
What is even more alarming is our ranking on public institutions’ competitiveness index, where we are at a low 104th slot out of 117. Indonesia, known in the ASEAN region for relatively inefficient public sector institutions even ranks higher at 89.
You see, these figures offer us points to ponder in redefining our policies towards economic integration or globalization.
But, we are not on the loosing end. Time and again, we have proven that resiliency is our best friend in times of great ordeals. Last year, our domestic economy posted a modest 4.7% expansion amidst intense political bickering and standoffs we experienced at the second half of year. Both the peso and stock markets have been regarded as one of the strongest currency and trading bourse both in Asia and the world. And our OFWs continue to provide some US$ 9 billion worth of remittances that continue to pump-prime our economy. Domestic consumption has been relatively stable to moderately high, even with the E-VAT implementation and increasing prices of petroleum. Investments have started to plow back into the economy in key sunrise industries – tourism, call centers and other BPOs, transportation and communications. The good “vibes” so as the crystal ball readers might say are well in tact, we just need to find a way to continue with the momentum.
FILIPINO BUSINESSMEN AND LOCAL COMPETITIVENESS
Where does business stand in the competitiveness drive? First, I must point out that local businessmen continue to bet on the future of our economy. We have not chickened out. The Filipino businessmen, if we put our collective minds into it, will bring progress and prosperity to our country.
To end with a ray of hope, let us see if we have been developing sunrise industries. The air is full of where and how we have gone bad, most of us don’t bother to look for our redeeming sides, anymore.
I foresee a steady growth of enterprises and new industries that find themselves integrated in the Asia-wide production, supply and distribution chain. Our trade with the rest of Asia is expected to steadily rise as parts of the regional economy are drawn closer to each other.
We, in the chamber movement over the years have become the critical catalyst for economic development. In most instances, we have shown and led the way for economic survival and cooperation. In this time of great ordeal that our nation is beset with, we again stand firm as an institution to serve our small constituents with important and key services needed to survive the test of time.
I believe that the greatest thing in this world is not so much where we are, but in what direction we are moving. Unless you set big, worthwhile goals, you’ll never move beyond your current abilities. You, as the forthcoming association of business leaders engaged in international trade policy, have the power to calibrate the engine for economic growth and ensure our competitiveness advantage stands tall internationally.
We have learned from the past, and the present is our platform for the future. This year I encourage the Chamber of International Trade to continue and complete the projects that will make our country more competitive. I am convinced that you have the management and staff, the enthusiasm, the pride, and the skills for the opportunities that lie ahead. I look forward to your active engagement in the activities of PCCI.
Thank you and a pleasant day to all.
Great Speeches: “Revisiting the Role of the Academe in National Discipline”
Dr. Nancy L. Elerina, Director, Social Research Center, UST;
Dr. Federico Macaranas, Executive Director of AIM;
Friends, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen; a pleasant morning to you all.
I AM PLEASED—AND HONOURED—to be invited to speak before your symposium on “Revisiting the Role of the Academe in National Discipline.” I know I am in the midst of erudite people who value the pursuit of higher education as a calling, not only to improve themselves, likewise to make things happen in the country.
First of all, I would like to thank UST for doing a good job in producing world class and well-disciplined graduates. I am optimistic for the future because I see a new spirit of dynamism and a new generation of leaders rising in the country, evoking hope for the future.
Definitely, your topic is very timely and relevant to our society today.
The importance of national discipline to the success of our endeavors towards national development cannot be overemphasized.
I share with you the observation that there is indeed an alarming decrease in national discipline, especially among the youth. The youth today are faced with so many distractions like cellular phones, computer games, play station, internet, proliferation of pirated DVDs, MP3 players, and so on and so forth. I see everywhere many students who, instead of reading their lessons and discussing their home works, listen to music instead through their earphone, even while conversing with each other. Some even play the music so loud that you could hear the music from their earphones. Most alarming in all these is the distribution of pornography in all forms from VCDs, DVDs, cellphones, and even lighters, which has been done with impunity.
These are but a few of the problems that corrode the values of the young.
I also noticed that mediocrity among many has been the name of the game. Instead of vying for excellence and instilling discipline in developing the value of hard work, many are contented with “pwede na yan” attitude.
But the youth cannot be blamed for all these. Media plays a big role on how the youth views society. How can we imbibe in the youth the value of discipline and excellence when they see in television that even the vilest of criminals can get away with their crime, can get rich, can get the fanciest cars, and even get the support of the people at the same time?
It is indeed true that technology, while it has its noble purposes, has also its downside. And I am sad that it is the youth that has been mired in this quicksand of vices.
Even the Philippine social contract—the unwritten agreement between state and citizen that sets down their relative rights and duties—even this social contract is weakening, because many public institutions no longer work for the common good.
The social contract, as we know, is the cornerstone of the public and private partnership.
In its simplest form, the social contract exchanges people’s obedience for good governance.
People submit willingly to government only if those in authority govern them fairly, intelligently and efficiently.
To renew—and to strengthen—this social contract, we must do no less than foment a moral revolution in our public life.
We must cleanse our politics of its corruption— our economy of its cronyism and its inefficiency—and national society of its material poverty and its spiritual anxieties.
I see three basic problems as confronting our nation.
Politically, the key problem is corruption.
Economically, it is slow and highly uneven growth.
And, socially, it is mass poverty passed down from
generation to generation.
BREAKING UP THE LOGJAM OF POLITICAL CORRUPTION
UNDOUBTEDLY, corruption is our key political failing.
The brazenness with which people of influence violate official norms of conduct is the greatest source of ordinary people’s despair over our public life.
Yet—in the very words of a disillusioned public prosecutor—corruption is a “high-reward, low-risk” offence.
Not only must Government stop corruption— particularly in the most vulnerable Cabinet departments, procurement agencies, and public corporations.
It must also stamp out big-time smuggling, influence-peddling, and tax evasion.
Apparently the smuggling of petroleum alone, by the shipload through Subic port, costs Government a revenue loss of P3 billion yearly.
We should always remember that no life ever grows great until it is focused, dedicated and disciplined. Remember that discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments.
In business, no enterprise, no businessman, can ever hope to succeed if he has no sense of focus. This is the same for the employees. The increasing complexity of society today requires that employees be ambidextrous, that they be capable of doing two or three things at the same time and be good and excel at it. They are required to be calm under pressure. This can only be possible if a person is focused and well disciplined.
A well-disciplined employee is a very important asset to a company. Those who have the values of honor, discipline and excellence are the ones who usually rise to the top and become leaders, the movers and shakers of society.
A worker’s enthusiasm and discipline translates to better work performance, which in turn translates to more productivity. And this means growth for the company. This is why PCCI has never wavered in its advocacy of creating more jobs and creation of more humane and favorable working environment for workers and employees. Indeed employees are the foundation from which every business enterprise stands. They are every businessman’s partners in success.
We in the business community need your enthusiasm, your discipline, your idealism are needed to bring in new energy and determination to the increasing workforce.
I share the goals you seek for our economy and for our country. In a country of the young- as most of us are- young people can be a decisive- even a revolutionary force. Those among you who want to dream big and conquer the world need to be focused and know what you really want as early as today.
That idealism, that sense of sacrifice- that sense of discipline among our youth- we should channel to a creative purpose; to make the economy grow, to promote social equity and build a culture of partnership and cooperation among our people.
Due to the culture of divisiveness which seem to have permeated our society in the past year, we in the PCCI submitted to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo a resolution calling for national unity and sobriety and for all leaders of the country, both in government and private sector enterprises, to move forward and focus efforts in instituting key economic reforms for the national interest.
This year, we plan to put submit to the President a resolution urging the national government to integrate Values Education into all school curriculum.
In closing, let us remember what the great Mahatma Gandhi said that the things that will destroy us are: politics without principle; pleasure without conscience; wealth without work; knowledge without character; business without morality; science without humanity; and worship without sacrifice.
Lastly let us also not forget what Edmund Hillary, the first man to conquer Mount Everest, said, "You can never conquer the mountain. You can only conquer yourself."
Thank you and mabuhay po tayong lahat.
Dr. Federico Macaranas, Executive Director of AIM;
Friends, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen; a pleasant morning to you all.
I AM PLEASED—AND HONOURED—to be invited to speak before your symposium on “Revisiting the Role of the Academe in National Discipline.” I know I am in the midst of erudite people who value the pursuit of higher education as a calling, not only to improve themselves, likewise to make things happen in the country.
First of all, I would like to thank UST for doing a good job in producing world class and well-disciplined graduates. I am optimistic for the future because I see a new spirit of dynamism and a new generation of leaders rising in the country, evoking hope for the future.
Definitely, your topic is very timely and relevant to our society today.
The importance of national discipline to the success of our endeavors towards national development cannot be overemphasized.
I share with you the observation that there is indeed an alarming decrease in national discipline, especially among the youth. The youth today are faced with so many distractions like cellular phones, computer games, play station, internet, proliferation of pirated DVDs, MP3 players, and so on and so forth. I see everywhere many students who, instead of reading their lessons and discussing their home works, listen to music instead through their earphone, even while conversing with each other. Some even play the music so loud that you could hear the music from their earphones. Most alarming in all these is the distribution of pornography in all forms from VCDs, DVDs, cellphones, and even lighters, which has been done with impunity.
These are but a few of the problems that corrode the values of the young.
I also noticed that mediocrity among many has been the name of the game. Instead of vying for excellence and instilling discipline in developing the value of hard work, many are contented with “pwede na yan” attitude.
But the youth cannot be blamed for all these. Media plays a big role on how the youth views society. How can we imbibe in the youth the value of discipline and excellence when they see in television that even the vilest of criminals can get away with their crime, can get rich, can get the fanciest cars, and even get the support of the people at the same time?
It is indeed true that technology, while it has its noble purposes, has also its downside. And I am sad that it is the youth that has been mired in this quicksand of vices.
Even the Philippine social contract—the unwritten agreement between state and citizen that sets down their relative rights and duties—even this social contract is weakening, because many public institutions no longer work for the common good.
The social contract, as we know, is the cornerstone of the public and private partnership.
In its simplest form, the social contract exchanges people’s obedience for good governance.
People submit willingly to government only if those in authority govern them fairly, intelligently and efficiently.
To renew—and to strengthen—this social contract, we must do no less than foment a moral revolution in our public life.
We must cleanse our politics of its corruption— our economy of its cronyism and its inefficiency—and national society of its material poverty and its spiritual anxieties.
I see three basic problems as confronting our nation.
Politically, the key problem is corruption.
Economically, it is slow and highly uneven growth.
And, socially, it is mass poverty passed down from
generation to generation.
BREAKING UP THE LOGJAM OF POLITICAL CORRUPTION
UNDOUBTEDLY, corruption is our key political failing.
The brazenness with which people of influence violate official norms of conduct is the greatest source of ordinary people’s despair over our public life.
Yet—in the very words of a disillusioned public prosecutor—corruption is a “high-reward, low-risk” offence.
Not only must Government stop corruption— particularly in the most vulnerable Cabinet departments, procurement agencies, and public corporations.
It must also stamp out big-time smuggling, influence-peddling, and tax evasion.
Apparently the smuggling of petroleum alone, by the shipload through Subic port, costs Government a revenue loss of P3 billion yearly.
We should always remember that no life ever grows great until it is focused, dedicated and disciplined. Remember that discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments.
In business, no enterprise, no businessman, can ever hope to succeed if he has no sense of focus. This is the same for the employees. The increasing complexity of society today requires that employees be ambidextrous, that they be capable of doing two or three things at the same time and be good and excel at it. They are required to be calm under pressure. This can only be possible if a person is focused and well disciplined.
A well-disciplined employee is a very important asset to a company. Those who have the values of honor, discipline and excellence are the ones who usually rise to the top and become leaders, the movers and shakers of society.
A worker’s enthusiasm and discipline translates to better work performance, which in turn translates to more productivity. And this means growth for the company. This is why PCCI has never wavered in its advocacy of creating more jobs and creation of more humane and favorable working environment for workers and employees. Indeed employees are the foundation from which every business enterprise stands. They are every businessman’s partners in success.
We in the business community need your enthusiasm, your discipline, your idealism are needed to bring in new energy and determination to the increasing workforce.
I share the goals you seek for our economy and for our country. In a country of the young- as most of us are- young people can be a decisive- even a revolutionary force. Those among you who want to dream big and conquer the world need to be focused and know what you really want as early as today.
That idealism, that sense of sacrifice- that sense of discipline among our youth- we should channel to a creative purpose; to make the economy grow, to promote social equity and build a culture of partnership and cooperation among our people.
Due to the culture of divisiveness which seem to have permeated our society in the past year, we in the PCCI submitted to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo a resolution calling for national unity and sobriety and for all leaders of the country, both in government and private sector enterprises, to move forward and focus efforts in instituting key economic reforms for the national interest.
This year, we plan to put submit to the President a resolution urging the national government to integrate Values Education into all school curriculum.
In closing, let us remember what the great Mahatma Gandhi said that the things that will destroy us are: politics without principle; pleasure without conscience; wealth without work; knowledge without character; business without morality; science without humanity; and worship without sacrifice.
Lastly let us also not forget what Edmund Hillary, the first man to conquer Mount Everest, said, "You can never conquer the mountain. You can only conquer yourself."
Thank you and mabuhay po tayong lahat.
Great Speeches: FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS: ISSUES, COMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE LENSES OF THE BUSINESS SECTOR
I would like to thank you for inviting me here today. It is a distinct honor for me to be in this event.
Preferential trade and the rise of discriminatory blocs have become prominent features of the world economy.
Free trade areas (FTA) and customs unions (CU) continue to mushroom across the globe. Approximately 240 preferential trading arrangements (PTA) have been notified to the WTO, accounting for over 50 per cent of global trade.
Nearly every WTO member is now a member of a preferential bloc.
Many have gone further than WTO rules and cover subjects which have so far been excluded from, or not fully discussed in, multilateral negotiations including areas such as services, investment and intellectual property among others.
The US, for one, has at least five bilateral FTAs in force with Canada, Mexico, Jordan, Chile and Singapore. It has also initiated the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement and the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas.
Worth noting is the ASEAN Free Trade Area which has succeeded in pushing tariffs below 5 percent on 99 percent of the products traded within the area, eliminating $1.4 billion in tariffs.
The failure to launch a global trade round at the WTO Ministerial conference in DOHA led many to doubt the continued viability of the multilateral trading system.
That event highlighted the misgivings that developing countries have had about the outcome of the DOHA trade round. Many feel shortchanged and question the unequal balance of benefits and concessions made after acceding into the wide-ranging treaty.
This is one of the stated reasons for resorting to FTAs. A bilateral FTA, especially if it is initiated by a developing country would naturally have the advantage of “ownership” that can sometimes be perceived to be missing in a multilateral framework.
Two countries are said to be engaged in an FTA when they allow their products and services to leave and enter their ports freely, meaning without tariffs or restrictions.
An FTA removes the barriers in the flow of commodities and human services between two or more countries. Countries have different objectives when they decide to engage in free trade agreements.
Obviously, countries establish free trade areas to obtain improved market access through reciprocal exchanges of trade concessions. The elimination of tariff and quota restrictions is directed at opening up markets to and boosting trade between the two partner countries.
There are also a variety of non-trade reasons for signing an FTA.
Entering an FTA is partly motivated by the desire to attract greater foreign investment with an expanded market.
Countries also enter into these arrangements for strategic alliances and to improve bargaining positions in multilateral negotiations. FTAs can help lock in domestic policy reforms.
The proliferation of preferential trade agreements, especially bilateral ones, raises new challenges to Philippine policymakers and society.
At present, the Philippines is not a party to any bilateral free trade area. It is part of the plurilateral ASEAN Free Trade Area and is negotiating closer economic relations with Australia, New Zealand and China together with its ASEAN partners. There are discussions about initiating a free trade arrangement with Japan and the United States. Other than these, the Philippine government has not taken any significant step towards bilateralism.
It is sad to note that the government has no concrete strategies or deliberate policies toward FTAs yet. The Philippines appears to be more of a passive negotiator or participant in FTAs. Nonparticipation stifles the competition environment, prevents firms from reaching economies of scale in production, and limits trade expansion that a trade agreement may make possible.
While there is no template for an ideal FTA strategy, the country should at least be able to have a clear objective with respect to the elements of an FTA, the scope and institutional framework, the assurance that the FTA is a mechanism toward achieving a stronger purpose, and the criteria for choosing a partner to the FTA.
It is here that the business community would like to suggest a policy framework for FTAs.
We have to be clear that FTA negotiations are expected to be kept within the principles of multilateralism. Among the reasons being considered for pursuing a bilateral approach are to use it as a testing ground, as a step to multilateralism or as a defensive mechanism.
The business sector would like that the government map out industry-by-industry adjustment and competitiveness strategies with industry leaders in order to maximize the potentials of the FTA and manage the challenges of integration of economies.
We must know what products we produce in abundance and whose markets we need to pry open.
We must know what local industries or sectors to open for competition without endangering the survival of players already in them.
We also need to balance the interests of players in the same sector, not pit them against each other.
Another important task for the government, apart from determining what the country wants, is the identification specifically of its sensitive products.
Prior to the start of the negotiation, there must already be a classification of what products are negotiable and nonnegotiable.
We need to redefine what constitutes our National Economic Interests and identify the segments in our economy that are not negotiable.
In the heat of globalization, nations must know what they need to keep exclusively for them to avoid becoming hostages to foreign interests in the future.
Other possible issues that the government needs to address would be in services liberalization. This is an advantageous prospect because an FTA is seen to relax the rules on the deployment of the overseas Filipino workers, or OFWs.
The market access list would most likely include agricultural products, electronics, information technology, professional and business service, telecommunications, financial transfers and a horde of other sectors.
Attention should also be given to the so-called enhancing features of new-age FTAs, including rules on investments, competition policy, government procurement, transparency, and trade facilitation measures.
More than anything, there is a need to improve the country’s competitive edge, if it is to compete and trade directly with the world’s most competitive economies.
This would only be possible by upgrading the technical skills of Filipinos, improving the level of education in the country, developing the country’s infrastructure and logistics systems, reducing the cost of production in the country, and stabilizing the economy.
Without these factors in place the Philippines would be at the losing end of trade cooperation or competition with any country in general.
Also, the country’s legal framework should be considered. Apart from restricting foreign ownership of land, the Philippine Constitution mandates the 60 percent-40 percent joint ownership of businesses in key sectors, with Filipino nationals enjoying the bigger share. The law also prevents foreigners from practicing professions in the Philippines.
If something will not be done to address these restrictive provisions, foreign investments will have a hard time coming in this country.
The benefits of free trade areas, even in the short term, go beyond trade. In this respect the relationship between trade and investments should be stressed. Thus, to the extent that the employment generated from foreign investments can make up for the losses of the import competing industries that fail to compete, joining an FTA can be welfare enhancing.
An FTA will attract FDI not only from the partner country but also from non-members as well.
Joining an FTA is an exercise in political economy that we must carefully engage in.
There are benefits to gain from an FTA, however, it should be recognized that FTAs are not a panacea to cure the sluggish economy.
It is a strategy that should be carefully crafted, negotiated and implemented. It comes with both benefits and costs.
The question then is how to make an FTA work for the country. I hope that the business sector’s voice will be heard as far as creating policy guidelines for negotiating FTAs are concerned.
Thank you and good morning.
Preferential trade and the rise of discriminatory blocs have become prominent features of the world economy.
Free trade areas (FTA) and customs unions (CU) continue to mushroom across the globe. Approximately 240 preferential trading arrangements (PTA) have been notified to the WTO, accounting for over 50 per cent of global trade.
Nearly every WTO member is now a member of a preferential bloc.
Many have gone further than WTO rules and cover subjects which have so far been excluded from, or not fully discussed in, multilateral negotiations including areas such as services, investment and intellectual property among others.
The US, for one, has at least five bilateral FTAs in force with Canada, Mexico, Jordan, Chile and Singapore. It has also initiated the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement and the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas.
Worth noting is the ASEAN Free Trade Area which has succeeded in pushing tariffs below 5 percent on 99 percent of the products traded within the area, eliminating $1.4 billion in tariffs.
The failure to launch a global trade round at the WTO Ministerial conference in DOHA led many to doubt the continued viability of the multilateral trading system.
That event highlighted the misgivings that developing countries have had about the outcome of the DOHA trade round. Many feel shortchanged and question the unequal balance of benefits and concessions made after acceding into the wide-ranging treaty.
This is one of the stated reasons for resorting to FTAs. A bilateral FTA, especially if it is initiated by a developing country would naturally have the advantage of “ownership” that can sometimes be perceived to be missing in a multilateral framework.
Two countries are said to be engaged in an FTA when they allow their products and services to leave and enter their ports freely, meaning without tariffs or restrictions.
An FTA removes the barriers in the flow of commodities and human services between two or more countries. Countries have different objectives when they decide to engage in free trade agreements.
Obviously, countries establish free trade areas to obtain improved market access through reciprocal exchanges of trade concessions. The elimination of tariff and quota restrictions is directed at opening up markets to and boosting trade between the two partner countries.
There are also a variety of non-trade reasons for signing an FTA.
Entering an FTA is partly motivated by the desire to attract greater foreign investment with an expanded market.
Countries also enter into these arrangements for strategic alliances and to improve bargaining positions in multilateral negotiations. FTAs can help lock in domestic policy reforms.
The proliferation of preferential trade agreements, especially bilateral ones, raises new challenges to Philippine policymakers and society.
At present, the Philippines is not a party to any bilateral free trade area. It is part of the plurilateral ASEAN Free Trade Area and is negotiating closer economic relations with Australia, New Zealand and China together with its ASEAN partners. There are discussions about initiating a free trade arrangement with Japan and the United States. Other than these, the Philippine government has not taken any significant step towards bilateralism.
It is sad to note that the government has no concrete strategies or deliberate policies toward FTAs yet. The Philippines appears to be more of a passive negotiator or participant in FTAs. Nonparticipation stifles the competition environment, prevents firms from reaching economies of scale in production, and limits trade expansion that a trade agreement may make possible.
While there is no template for an ideal FTA strategy, the country should at least be able to have a clear objective with respect to the elements of an FTA, the scope and institutional framework, the assurance that the FTA is a mechanism toward achieving a stronger purpose, and the criteria for choosing a partner to the FTA.
It is here that the business community would like to suggest a policy framework for FTAs.
We have to be clear that FTA negotiations are expected to be kept within the principles of multilateralism. Among the reasons being considered for pursuing a bilateral approach are to use it as a testing ground, as a step to multilateralism or as a defensive mechanism.
The business sector would like that the government map out industry-by-industry adjustment and competitiveness strategies with industry leaders in order to maximize the potentials of the FTA and manage the challenges of integration of economies.
We must know what products we produce in abundance and whose markets we need to pry open.
We must know what local industries or sectors to open for competition without endangering the survival of players already in them.
We also need to balance the interests of players in the same sector, not pit them against each other.
Another important task for the government, apart from determining what the country wants, is the identification specifically of its sensitive products.
Prior to the start of the negotiation, there must already be a classification of what products are negotiable and nonnegotiable.
We need to redefine what constitutes our National Economic Interests and identify the segments in our economy that are not negotiable.
In the heat of globalization, nations must know what they need to keep exclusively for them to avoid becoming hostages to foreign interests in the future.
Other possible issues that the government needs to address would be in services liberalization. This is an advantageous prospect because an FTA is seen to relax the rules on the deployment of the overseas Filipino workers, or OFWs.
The market access list would most likely include agricultural products, electronics, information technology, professional and business service, telecommunications, financial transfers and a horde of other sectors.
Attention should also be given to the so-called enhancing features of new-age FTAs, including rules on investments, competition policy, government procurement, transparency, and trade facilitation measures.
More than anything, there is a need to improve the country’s competitive edge, if it is to compete and trade directly with the world’s most competitive economies.
This would only be possible by upgrading the technical skills of Filipinos, improving the level of education in the country, developing the country’s infrastructure and logistics systems, reducing the cost of production in the country, and stabilizing the economy.
Without these factors in place the Philippines would be at the losing end of trade cooperation or competition with any country in general.
Also, the country’s legal framework should be considered. Apart from restricting foreign ownership of land, the Philippine Constitution mandates the 60 percent-40 percent joint ownership of businesses in key sectors, with Filipino nationals enjoying the bigger share. The law also prevents foreigners from practicing professions in the Philippines.
If something will not be done to address these restrictive provisions, foreign investments will have a hard time coming in this country.
The benefits of free trade areas, even in the short term, go beyond trade. In this respect the relationship between trade and investments should be stressed. Thus, to the extent that the employment generated from foreign investments can make up for the losses of the import competing industries that fail to compete, joining an FTA can be welfare enhancing.
An FTA will attract FDI not only from the partner country but also from non-members as well.
Joining an FTA is an exercise in political economy that we must carefully engage in.
There are benefits to gain from an FTA, however, it should be recognized that FTAs are not a panacea to cure the sluggish economy.
It is a strategy that should be carefully crafted, negotiated and implemented. It comes with both benefits and costs.
The question then is how to make an FTA work for the country. I hope that the business sector’s voice will be heard as far as creating policy guidelines for negotiating FTAs are concerned.
Thank you and good morning.
Great Speeches: “AFFIRMING A LEGACY: STRENGTHENING THE CAPACITY OF THE FFW AS A TRADE UNION SOCIAL MOVEMENT”
From the Author: This is also a memorable one for me. This speech was very much in demand during Labor Day.
I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR INVITING ME HERE TODAY. IT IS A DISTINCT HONOR FOR ME TO BE IN THIS EVENT.
THE FFW REPRESENTS A VITAL SECTOR TO SOCIETY, THE WORKERS, WHOSE HANDS ERECTED THE STRONGEST FOUNDATION FROM WHICH THE TALLEST BUILDING STANDS. IT IS THE WORKERS’ THAT IS THE BACKBONE OF THE ECONOMY. FOR WITHOUT THE PATIENCE, AND SUPPORT OF THE WORKERS’, NO COMPANY, FIRM, INDUSTRY AND ECONOMY WILL EVER EMERGE AND SUSTAIN ITSELF IN THE LONG-RUN.
WE LAUD YOUR EFFORTS IN REPRESENTING THE RIGHTS OF WORKERS AND WE AGREE WITH YOUR THRUST OF SOCIAL COOPERATION AND TRUE SOCIAL PARTNERSHIP. INDEED, SEEING A WORKER AS A FELLOW HUMAN BEING IS A GOOD START IN UPLIFTING THE DECENCY OF LABORERS AND EMPLOYEES.
THE FFW HAS CONTRIBUTED TO POLITICAL AND SOCIAL CHANGES AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHILIPPINES. THE ISSUES YOU STAND FOR ARE SO IMPORTANT THAT THEY MUST BE ADDRESSED POSITIVELY NOT ONLY TO STRENGTHEN THE TRADE UNION MOVEMENT BUT ALSO FOR THE SUSTAINABLE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND INDUSTRIAL GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT. THE FFW’S IMPORTANCE TO SOCIETY CANNOT BE OVEREMPHASIZED.
THE PAPM HAS DONE WELL, YES, BUT THE TIME HAS COME TO DO EVEN BETTER.
THE PCCI BELIEVES THAT A RENEWED AND CONTINUED PARTNERSHIP WITH KEY SECTORS IN SOCIETY, LIKE THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR, PLAYS A PIVOTAL ROLE IN STRENGTHENING THE FFW AS A TRADE UNION AND A SOCIAL MOVEMENT.
I BELIEVE THAT ALL OUR ENDEAVORS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SECTORS WE REPRESENT CAN BE DIRECTED TO ONE COMMON DIRECTION.
THE GOVERNMENT IS ON THE RIGHT TRACK WITH RESPECT TO IMPROVING THE COUNTRY’S FISCAL CONDITION. WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RVAT (REFORMED VAT), WE EXPECT TO GENERATE OVER P50 BILLION IN ADDITIONAL REVENUES THIS YEAR. THIS TO, WILL FUEL AGRICULTURAL, ECONOMIC, AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS ACROSS THE ARCHIPELAGO.
THESE PROJECTS ARE EXPECTED TO PROVIDE MORE JOBS AND MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR LIVELIHOOD DEVELOPMENT FOR OUR PEOPLE.
ALSO, WITH THE CONTINUED INCREASE IN PRICES OF OIL AND OTHER COMMODITIES, THE PCCI CONTINUES TO ADVOCATE FOR POLICIES THAT WOULD MAKE IT EASIER FOR CONSUMERS TO ADAPT TO THE CHANGING WORLD MARKET.
IN FACT, PCCI IS PUTTING UP A COUNTERPART TO GOVERNMENT’S PROGRAM ON PUMP-PRIMING THE ECONOMY. DURING THE RECENTLY CONCLUDED MEETING OF THE COUNCIL OF STATE, I HAVE OUTLINED ON BEHALF OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR, OUR INITIATIVES TO COMPLIMENT GOVERNMENT’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ENDEAVORS TO PROMOTE INVESTMENTS, GENERATE MORE JOBS AND INCREASE RURAL INCOME.
THESE PRIVATE SECTOR CONTRIBUTIONS, WHICH INCLUDE TOURISM AND ENERGY INVESTMENTS, DEVELOPMENT OF THE MILK AND DAIRY INDUSTRY, GUARANTEE FUNDS TO SME LOANS, CONSTRUCTION OF SCHOOL BUILDINGS, PROVIDING VOIP (VOICE OVER INTERNET PROTOCOL) SERVICES IN THE BARANGAYS, EXPANSION OF KALAHI LIVELIHOOD PROGRAMS IN THE RURAL AREAS, AND ASSISTANCE TO THE TINDAHAN NG BAYAN, IS EXPECTED TO CREATE 3 MILLION JOBS IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS; GENERATE US$ 4 BILLION WORTH OF PRIVATE SECTOR INVESTMENTS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS; OPEN 10,000 NEW BUSINESS ENTERPRISES; AND PROVIDE PHP 12 BILLION WORTH OF SOCIAL INVESTMENTS IN VARIOUS COMMUNITIES AND PROVINCES.
THE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT, PRIVATE SECTOR, AND CIVIL SOCIETY IS ESPECIALLY SIGNIFICANT GIVEN OUR RAPIDLY GROWING INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, TRADE, AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN OUR BORDERLESS WORLD. THIS HAS STRENGTHENED LOCAL AND GLOBAL TIES AMONG DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS COMING FROM DIVERSE NATIONS. BY ADAPTING TO THESE NEW CHANGES AND BY ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF ITS PEOPLE, EACH AND EVERY COUNTRY MAY ENGAGE IN A HEALTHY COMPETITION THAT IS VITAL FOR THE SUCCESS OF THE NATION.
YOUR THEME, “AFFIRMING A LEGACY: STRENGTHENING THE CAPACITY OF THE FFW AS A TRADE UNION AND SOCIAL MOVEMENT”, IS A REMINDER TO THE MEMBERS OF THE FFW THAT EVEN IF THEIR ENVIRONMENT IS RAPIDLY CHANGING, THEY MUST CONTINUALLY ADHERE TO THEIR PRINCIPLES AND MOVE TOWARDS A PATH OF INNOVATION. THROUGH THE HARD WORK, PATIENCE, AND PERSEVERANCE OF THE WORKERS, EVERY COMPANY HAS AN ADVANTAGE IN THE GLOBAL ARENA.
A WORKER’S ENTHUSIASM TRANSLATES TO BETTER WORK PERFORMANCE, WHICH IN TURN TRANSLATES TO MORE PRODUCTIVITY. AND THIS MEANS GROWTH FOR THE COMPANY. THIS IS WHY PCCI HAS NEVER WAVERED IN ITS ADVOCACY OF CREATING MORE JOBS AND CREATION OF MORE HUMANE AND FAVORABLE WORKING ENVIRONMENT FOR WORKERS AND EMPLOYEES. INDEED, WORKERS ARE MOVERS OF THIS COUNTRY. THEY ARE THE FOUNDATION FROM WHICH EVERY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE STANDS. THEY ARE EVERY BUSINESS MAN’S PARTNER IN SUCCESS.
THIS IS WHY WE HOLD EVERY WORKER WITH HIGH ESTEEM. THE PCCI WILL ALWAYS BE HERE TO SUPPORT YOU AND LISTEN TO YOU. LET US FIND NEW AVENUES OF COOPERATION. HELP US TO KNOW HOW WE COULD BE OF BETTER ASSISTANCE TO YOUR ASSOCIATION. WE BELBIEVE THAT IT IS ONLY THROUGH A MORE IMPROVED COOPERATION THAT WE COULD ENHANCE OUR PARTNERSHIP IN NATION-BUILDING. DEFINITELY, YOUR ASSOCIATION’S CONTINUED AND STRENGTHENED PARTNERSHIP WITH THE GOVERNMENT AND THE BUSINESS SECTOR IS THE KEY TO STRENGTHENING YOUR CAPACITY AS A TRADE UNION SOCIAL MOVEMENT. TOGETHER, WE COULD MOVE FORWARD AND FACE THE CHALLENGES TOGETHER.
THE FFW HAS DONE WELL, YES, BUT THE TIME HAS COME TO DO EVEN BETTER. THERE IS NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO LEAD.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO STRENGTHENING OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH YOU. THE FFW GIVES A VOICE TO ALL THE WORKERS, AND HELPS BUILD A SOCIETY THAT IS BASED ON FREEDOM, JUSTICE AND PEACE. THIS, I BELIEVE IS THE ESSENCE OF THIS SIGNIFICANT ORGANIZATION, AND I WISH MORE POWER TO ALL YOUR ENDEAVORS.
WE ARE FACING AN EXCITING PERIOD IN OUR HISTORY AND I DO LOOK FORWARD TO THE CHALLENGES BECAUSE WE WILL BE FACING THESE TOGETHER.
THANK YOU AND MABUHAY KAYONG LAHAT.
I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR INVITING ME HERE TODAY. IT IS A DISTINCT HONOR FOR ME TO BE IN THIS EVENT.
THE FFW REPRESENTS A VITAL SECTOR TO SOCIETY, THE WORKERS, WHOSE HANDS ERECTED THE STRONGEST FOUNDATION FROM WHICH THE TALLEST BUILDING STANDS. IT IS THE WORKERS’ THAT IS THE BACKBONE OF THE ECONOMY. FOR WITHOUT THE PATIENCE, AND SUPPORT OF THE WORKERS’, NO COMPANY, FIRM, INDUSTRY AND ECONOMY WILL EVER EMERGE AND SUSTAIN ITSELF IN THE LONG-RUN.
WE LAUD YOUR EFFORTS IN REPRESENTING THE RIGHTS OF WORKERS AND WE AGREE WITH YOUR THRUST OF SOCIAL COOPERATION AND TRUE SOCIAL PARTNERSHIP. INDEED, SEEING A WORKER AS A FELLOW HUMAN BEING IS A GOOD START IN UPLIFTING THE DECENCY OF LABORERS AND EMPLOYEES.
THE FFW HAS CONTRIBUTED TO POLITICAL AND SOCIAL CHANGES AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHILIPPINES. THE ISSUES YOU STAND FOR ARE SO IMPORTANT THAT THEY MUST BE ADDRESSED POSITIVELY NOT ONLY TO STRENGTHEN THE TRADE UNION MOVEMENT BUT ALSO FOR THE SUSTAINABLE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND INDUSTRIAL GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT. THE FFW’S IMPORTANCE TO SOCIETY CANNOT BE OVEREMPHASIZED.
THE PAPM HAS DONE WELL, YES, BUT THE TIME HAS COME TO DO EVEN BETTER.
THE PCCI BELIEVES THAT A RENEWED AND CONTINUED PARTNERSHIP WITH KEY SECTORS IN SOCIETY, LIKE THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR, PLAYS A PIVOTAL ROLE IN STRENGTHENING THE FFW AS A TRADE UNION AND A SOCIAL MOVEMENT.
I BELIEVE THAT ALL OUR ENDEAVORS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SECTORS WE REPRESENT CAN BE DIRECTED TO ONE COMMON DIRECTION.
THE GOVERNMENT IS ON THE RIGHT TRACK WITH RESPECT TO IMPROVING THE COUNTRY’S FISCAL CONDITION. WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RVAT (REFORMED VAT), WE EXPECT TO GENERATE OVER P50 BILLION IN ADDITIONAL REVENUES THIS YEAR. THIS TO, WILL FUEL AGRICULTURAL, ECONOMIC, AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS ACROSS THE ARCHIPELAGO.
THESE PROJECTS ARE EXPECTED TO PROVIDE MORE JOBS AND MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR LIVELIHOOD DEVELOPMENT FOR OUR PEOPLE.
ALSO, WITH THE CONTINUED INCREASE IN PRICES OF OIL AND OTHER COMMODITIES, THE PCCI CONTINUES TO ADVOCATE FOR POLICIES THAT WOULD MAKE IT EASIER FOR CONSUMERS TO ADAPT TO THE CHANGING WORLD MARKET.
IN FACT, PCCI IS PUTTING UP A COUNTERPART TO GOVERNMENT’S PROGRAM ON PUMP-PRIMING THE ECONOMY. DURING THE RECENTLY CONCLUDED MEETING OF THE COUNCIL OF STATE, I HAVE OUTLINED ON BEHALF OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR, OUR INITIATIVES TO COMPLIMENT GOVERNMENT’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ENDEAVORS TO PROMOTE INVESTMENTS, GENERATE MORE JOBS AND INCREASE RURAL INCOME.
THESE PRIVATE SECTOR CONTRIBUTIONS, WHICH INCLUDE TOURISM AND ENERGY INVESTMENTS, DEVELOPMENT OF THE MILK AND DAIRY INDUSTRY, GUARANTEE FUNDS TO SME LOANS, CONSTRUCTION OF SCHOOL BUILDINGS, PROVIDING VOIP (VOICE OVER INTERNET PROTOCOL) SERVICES IN THE BARANGAYS, EXPANSION OF KALAHI LIVELIHOOD PROGRAMS IN THE RURAL AREAS, AND ASSISTANCE TO THE TINDAHAN NG BAYAN, IS EXPECTED TO CREATE 3 MILLION JOBS IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS; GENERATE US$ 4 BILLION WORTH OF PRIVATE SECTOR INVESTMENTS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS; OPEN 10,000 NEW BUSINESS ENTERPRISES; AND PROVIDE PHP 12 BILLION WORTH OF SOCIAL INVESTMENTS IN VARIOUS COMMUNITIES AND PROVINCES.
THE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT, PRIVATE SECTOR, AND CIVIL SOCIETY IS ESPECIALLY SIGNIFICANT GIVEN OUR RAPIDLY GROWING INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, TRADE, AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN OUR BORDERLESS WORLD. THIS HAS STRENGTHENED LOCAL AND GLOBAL TIES AMONG DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS COMING FROM DIVERSE NATIONS. BY ADAPTING TO THESE NEW CHANGES AND BY ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF ITS PEOPLE, EACH AND EVERY COUNTRY MAY ENGAGE IN A HEALTHY COMPETITION THAT IS VITAL FOR THE SUCCESS OF THE NATION.
YOUR THEME, “AFFIRMING A LEGACY: STRENGTHENING THE CAPACITY OF THE FFW AS A TRADE UNION AND SOCIAL MOVEMENT”, IS A REMINDER TO THE MEMBERS OF THE FFW THAT EVEN IF THEIR ENVIRONMENT IS RAPIDLY CHANGING, THEY MUST CONTINUALLY ADHERE TO THEIR PRINCIPLES AND MOVE TOWARDS A PATH OF INNOVATION. THROUGH THE HARD WORK, PATIENCE, AND PERSEVERANCE OF THE WORKERS, EVERY COMPANY HAS AN ADVANTAGE IN THE GLOBAL ARENA.
A WORKER’S ENTHUSIASM TRANSLATES TO BETTER WORK PERFORMANCE, WHICH IN TURN TRANSLATES TO MORE PRODUCTIVITY. AND THIS MEANS GROWTH FOR THE COMPANY. THIS IS WHY PCCI HAS NEVER WAVERED IN ITS ADVOCACY OF CREATING MORE JOBS AND CREATION OF MORE HUMANE AND FAVORABLE WORKING ENVIRONMENT FOR WORKERS AND EMPLOYEES. INDEED, WORKERS ARE MOVERS OF THIS COUNTRY. THEY ARE THE FOUNDATION FROM WHICH EVERY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE STANDS. THEY ARE EVERY BUSINESS MAN’S PARTNER IN SUCCESS.
THIS IS WHY WE HOLD EVERY WORKER WITH HIGH ESTEEM. THE PCCI WILL ALWAYS BE HERE TO SUPPORT YOU AND LISTEN TO YOU. LET US FIND NEW AVENUES OF COOPERATION. HELP US TO KNOW HOW WE COULD BE OF BETTER ASSISTANCE TO YOUR ASSOCIATION. WE BELBIEVE THAT IT IS ONLY THROUGH A MORE IMPROVED COOPERATION THAT WE COULD ENHANCE OUR PARTNERSHIP IN NATION-BUILDING. DEFINITELY, YOUR ASSOCIATION’S CONTINUED AND STRENGTHENED PARTNERSHIP WITH THE GOVERNMENT AND THE BUSINESS SECTOR IS THE KEY TO STRENGTHENING YOUR CAPACITY AS A TRADE UNION SOCIAL MOVEMENT. TOGETHER, WE COULD MOVE FORWARD AND FACE THE CHALLENGES TOGETHER.
THE FFW HAS DONE WELL, YES, BUT THE TIME HAS COME TO DO EVEN BETTER. THERE IS NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO LEAD.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO STRENGTHENING OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH YOU. THE FFW GIVES A VOICE TO ALL THE WORKERS, AND HELPS BUILD A SOCIETY THAT IS BASED ON FREEDOM, JUSTICE AND PEACE. THIS, I BELIEVE IS THE ESSENCE OF THIS SIGNIFICANT ORGANIZATION, AND I WISH MORE POWER TO ALL YOUR ENDEAVORS.
WE ARE FACING AN EXCITING PERIOD IN OUR HISTORY AND I DO LOOK FORWARD TO THE CHALLENGES BECAUSE WE WILL BE FACING THESE TOGETHER.
THANK YOU AND MABUHAY KAYONG LAHAT.
Great Speeches: Early Harves Program
From the Author: This is my earliest speech given in a forum where I was also the emcee, making this a truly memorable creation of my mind.
MY WARMEST GREETINGS TO ALL OF YOU!
ON BEHALF OF THE PHILIPPINE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (PCCI), I WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME EVERYONE TO THE FORUM ON THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM. THIS PROGRAM WAS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO ACCELERATE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CHINA-ASEAN ECONOMIC COOPERATION FRAMEWORK AND IT EMPOWERS THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY TO OPEN-UP AND DIVERSIFY ONE OF ITS MOST IMPORTANT SECTORS: AGRICULTURE.
THE LEADERS OF THE ASEAN COUNTRIES AND CHINA HAVE AGREED TO ESTABLISH A FREE TRADE AREA BY 2010 AND ACCORDING TO THE PRESENT DAY STATISTICS THE ASEAN-CHINA FTA WILL COVER MORE THAN 1.7 BILLION CONSUMERS AND WILL GENERATE A TOTAL GDP OF TWO TRILLION DOLLARS. THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM IS JUST ONE OF THE PROGRAMS UNDER THE ASEAN-CHINA FTA AND BY SIGNING THIS FREE-TRADE AGREEMENT, THE ASEAN COUNTRIES, INCLUDING THE PHILIPPINES, CAN SUCCESSFULLY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WHAT THIS PROGRAM HAS TO OFFER. THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM NOT ONLY REDUCES TARIFFS OF CERTAIN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS BUT IT ALSO ALLOWS THE ASEAN COUNTRIES, SPECIFICALLY THE PHILIPPINES, TO ACCESS THE IMMENSE DOMESTIC MARKET OF CHINA.
THROUGH THIS FORUM, MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM WILL BE SHARED. THE EFFECTS OF THIS PROGRAM AND ITS IMPLICATIONS ON TRADE WILL BE FULLY KNOWN.
I WELCOME ALL OF YOU TO THIS PROMINENT EVENT. THIS FORUM IS INDEED VERY SIGNIFICANT TO US AND TO ALL THE ASEAN COUNTRIES FOR IT HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF TRADE, INVESTMENT AND COOPERATION. IT IS TIME TO RECOGNIZE THE POTENTIAL OF OUR AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY AND MAKE IT MORE COMPETITIVE IN THE INTERNATIONAL WORLD. I WISH THE PARTICIPANTS ALL THE BEST AND I THANK USEC. SERRANO AND HIS TEAM FOR GRACING THIS EVENT. I HOPE THAT THIS FORUM SERVES AS A VEHICLE FOR ALL OF US TO UNITE AND TO CREATE A RENEWED AND REVITALIZED AGRICULTURAL SECTOR IN THE PHILIPPINES.
THANK YOU AND MABUHAY TAYONG LAHAT!
MY WARMEST GREETINGS TO ALL OF YOU!
ON BEHALF OF THE PHILIPPINE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (PCCI), I WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME EVERYONE TO THE FORUM ON THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM. THIS PROGRAM WAS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO ACCELERATE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CHINA-ASEAN ECONOMIC COOPERATION FRAMEWORK AND IT EMPOWERS THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY TO OPEN-UP AND DIVERSIFY ONE OF ITS MOST IMPORTANT SECTORS: AGRICULTURE.
THE LEADERS OF THE ASEAN COUNTRIES AND CHINA HAVE AGREED TO ESTABLISH A FREE TRADE AREA BY 2010 AND ACCORDING TO THE PRESENT DAY STATISTICS THE ASEAN-CHINA FTA WILL COVER MORE THAN 1.7 BILLION CONSUMERS AND WILL GENERATE A TOTAL GDP OF TWO TRILLION DOLLARS. THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM IS JUST ONE OF THE PROGRAMS UNDER THE ASEAN-CHINA FTA AND BY SIGNING THIS FREE-TRADE AGREEMENT, THE ASEAN COUNTRIES, INCLUDING THE PHILIPPINES, CAN SUCCESSFULLY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WHAT THIS PROGRAM HAS TO OFFER. THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM NOT ONLY REDUCES TARIFFS OF CERTAIN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS BUT IT ALSO ALLOWS THE ASEAN COUNTRIES, SPECIFICALLY THE PHILIPPINES, TO ACCESS THE IMMENSE DOMESTIC MARKET OF CHINA.
THROUGH THIS FORUM, MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE EARLY HARVEST PROGRAM WILL BE SHARED. THE EFFECTS OF THIS PROGRAM AND ITS IMPLICATIONS ON TRADE WILL BE FULLY KNOWN.
I WELCOME ALL OF YOU TO THIS PROMINENT EVENT. THIS FORUM IS INDEED VERY SIGNIFICANT TO US AND TO ALL THE ASEAN COUNTRIES FOR IT HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF TRADE, INVESTMENT AND COOPERATION. IT IS TIME TO RECOGNIZE THE POTENTIAL OF OUR AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY AND MAKE IT MORE COMPETITIVE IN THE INTERNATIONAL WORLD. I WISH THE PARTICIPANTS ALL THE BEST AND I THANK USEC. SERRANO AND HIS TEAM FOR GRACING THIS EVENT. I HOPE THAT THIS FORUM SERVES AS A VEHICLE FOR ALL OF US TO UNITE AND TO CREATE A RENEWED AND REVITALIZED AGRICULTURAL SECTOR IN THE PHILIPPINES.
THANK YOU AND MABUHAY TAYONG LAHAT!
Great Speeches: Looking Forward Together
Governor Casimiro A. Ynares III of the Province of Rizal
Prof. Virgilio Esguerra, Rizal Provincial Administrator
Ambassador William Co, Special Envoy for Agriculture Trade in China
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen, good morning.
It is my honor and privilege to speak before you in the 1st Rizal Business Conference. We are holding this Conference at a very crucial moment of our history. Your theme on public private partnership, therefore, is both timely and relevant.
I always believed that we cannot solve the challenges of our times unless we solve them together – unless we cooperate and understand that we may have different stories to tell, but we hold common hopes and dreams.
At this point in our lives, a stronger partnership and unity is what we need. But of course, true unity cannot be so easily won. It starts with a change in attitudes - a broadening of our minds, and a broadening of our hearts.
On the Current Financial Crisis
Over the past few months, things did not turn out as we expected. The global financial crisis compounded the episode of rising oil and food prices that kicked up our inflation rate. Our exports dropped more than expected as our foreign markets shrunk. Investments in our stock markets evaporated. Foreign direct investments fell below target. Not surprisingly bureaucratic tangles delayed the public spending that was supposed to mitigate all these.
Although we have weathered the global financial crisis rather well the past few months, the adverse effects of slower economic growth in most of our main markets cannot be held completely at bay. We do expect a slower pace of growth in the forthcoming period. But recession might be quite another thing.
The commonly-accepted definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters without growth. By that definition, a recession in the Philippine economy is highly unlikely because we have maintained fiscal discipline and we have formulated the necessary monetary policy firewalls to avert whatever impact the crisis may present.
However, the US economy is generally considered to be in a recession even if it has not had two quarters without growth. It is considered to be in recession because of dramatic drops in consumer demand that will inevitably drag down prices, profits and production.
Our own consumer demand has shown signs of flagging. That is significant in our case because our previous growth has been largely consumer demand-driven, fueled by the steady inflow of remittances from our army of overseas workers. The steep rise in the prices of oil products since last year forced consumers to reallocate disposable income from other items of expenditure. People now would rather hold on to their money than spend it on non-essential products. That means producers of non-essentials have seen sales drop and feel the recession-like crunch more than others.
But oil prices are dropping dramatically. When the steep decline in oil prices reflect in a correction in consumer spending, our manufactures are likely to experience a fresh surge in demand.
Our agricultural sector is likely to post a lower growth compared to last year. It seems that the period of high inflation forced our farmers to cut back on fertilizer inputs, leading to lower yields.
In the Philippines, we have not seen any significant enterprise closures so far, despite the global turbulence. That is a good sign that the economy is weathering this storm quite well. Abroad, large companies have either shut down or laid off workers. In the US, unemployment has sharply risen.
The Philippines has, historically, performed beneath the average growth of the region. But a seven percent forecasted growth for our neighboring economies means that there will be enough economic activity around us to keep our economy trudging ahead.
Still, for many corporations, it will still feel like a recession. Credit remains tight, even as monetary authorities hold down interest rates. Demand for some sectors will remain sluggish. After all, no one is certain if the global financial crisis has hit bottom.
The trend towards a more substantial reduction in our economic growth is not without remedy. The important thing is not to be complacent.
As we begin to close the year, we see a deficit figure that could balloon larger than expected if not managed more effectively. The dollar has surged and the peso has weakened.
Year 2009 will be a challenging year, no doubt. Government has to adopt a proactive posture. Every concerned citizen must take cognizance of the challenge as much as the private sector has, and go beyond business-as-usual in proposing more programs that will enhance our efforts to mitigate the ill effects of an economic slowdown.
The night is not entirely black, fortunately. Against the odds, the volume of remittance inflows to the country increased rather than decreased last month. That means we can expect only a marginal decline in domestic consumer demand — or even an increase, to help compensate for the nosedive in our export revenues.
What PCCI is Doing
PCCI has not been a passive observer in all of these. In fact, we have fine-tuned our advocacies to effectively address these crucial matters.
In fact, the PCCI has proposed the creation of P100-billion fund for infrastructure programs that would spur job creation and growth momentum. It is also a means to pump-prime the economy and shield the country amid the global economic slowdown.
Also, to sustain the country's growth and global competitiveness, we have to go back to basics and focus on four key areas over the coming years of my Presidency. These critical areas are fundamental to meeting the challenges brought about by globalization and the need for enhanced competition. We have summarized these initiatives under what we call PCCI's F.I.R.E. Programs for Competitiveness –
1. Food security and sufficiency
2. Infrastructure Development
3. Re-engineering the educational system; and
4. Energy self-sufficiency
Let me delve on them one by one:
Food Security and Sufficiency
Agriculture is considered as the fundamental source of employment and economic growth in the country. The development of this sector is, therefore, essential to any development effort geared towards the alleviation of poverty and enhancing the food security of the country.
Infrastructure Development
Infrastructure is one of the key factors that directly affect the country's global competitiveness, ability to attract investments, and economic growth. An efficient transport network will reshape the country's physical and economic configuration. From fragmented and island economies, the country will develop a unified and integrated economy where people and goods can move and trade swiftly and efficiently.
Re-engineering the Educational System
According to the Commission on Higher Education, only 40% college graduates are able to land jobs immediately after graduation. The rest join the increasing number of unemployed. This is caused by a plethora of causes, one of which is the mismatch between the available jobs in the market and skills of the graduates.
PCCI, through the Presidential Task Force on Education, will continue to be the catalyst in the promotion of a closer cooperation between higher education and industry that will generate commitments from both sides to prepare graduates for gainful employment or entrepreneurship. The coverage of this program and the private participation it requires need to be widened, simultaneous to enlarging PCCI's role in Employment S.T.O.R.E ( or School to Office Response to Employment System) where industry demand for specific openings are matched under a ladderized system of job entry through on-the-job training or apprenticeship.
Energy Self-Sufficiency
PCCI's main advocacy on energy is to reduce power generation, transmission, and distribution costs to the consumers. Over the long-term, there is the need to advocate for more energy infrastructure projects to meet growing demand, the expansion of oil and gas exploration activities and incentives for investments in renewable energy and alternative fuel development.
Concluding Statement
It may be argued that what we are experiencing right now is the dawn of a new political economy. This is a new milieu that has gone beyond conservatives and liberals. This new world order is about accepting that profound change had happened and it is high time politics, economics, culture, and international institutions reflected it. It is about new realities and old virtues. It will be the era of new rules necessitating the need for new partnerships and rekindling old ones.
Unity is something that we would have to earn through great effort and determination.
So we ask you that we walk together, march together, and join together in one united voice. Even the weak become strong when they are united. Let us become a living testament to what a strong business sector can do by acting in unity.
Together, starting today, let us finish the work that needs to be done.
Thank you very much and I wish you all a successful Conference.
Prof. Virgilio Esguerra, Rizal Provincial Administrator
Ambassador William Co, Special Envoy for Agriculture Trade in China
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen, good morning.
It is my honor and privilege to speak before you in the 1st Rizal Business Conference. We are holding this Conference at a very crucial moment of our history. Your theme on public private partnership, therefore, is both timely and relevant.
I always believed that we cannot solve the challenges of our times unless we solve them together – unless we cooperate and understand that we may have different stories to tell, but we hold common hopes and dreams.
At this point in our lives, a stronger partnership and unity is what we need. But of course, true unity cannot be so easily won. It starts with a change in attitudes - a broadening of our minds, and a broadening of our hearts.
On the Current Financial Crisis
Over the past few months, things did not turn out as we expected. The global financial crisis compounded the episode of rising oil and food prices that kicked up our inflation rate. Our exports dropped more than expected as our foreign markets shrunk. Investments in our stock markets evaporated. Foreign direct investments fell below target. Not surprisingly bureaucratic tangles delayed the public spending that was supposed to mitigate all these.
Although we have weathered the global financial crisis rather well the past few months, the adverse effects of slower economic growth in most of our main markets cannot be held completely at bay. We do expect a slower pace of growth in the forthcoming period. But recession might be quite another thing.
The commonly-accepted definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters without growth. By that definition, a recession in the Philippine economy is highly unlikely because we have maintained fiscal discipline and we have formulated the necessary monetary policy firewalls to avert whatever impact the crisis may present.
However, the US economy is generally considered to be in a recession even if it has not had two quarters without growth. It is considered to be in recession because of dramatic drops in consumer demand that will inevitably drag down prices, profits and production.
Our own consumer demand has shown signs of flagging. That is significant in our case because our previous growth has been largely consumer demand-driven, fueled by the steady inflow of remittances from our army of overseas workers. The steep rise in the prices of oil products since last year forced consumers to reallocate disposable income from other items of expenditure. People now would rather hold on to their money than spend it on non-essential products. That means producers of non-essentials have seen sales drop and feel the recession-like crunch more than others.
But oil prices are dropping dramatically. When the steep decline in oil prices reflect in a correction in consumer spending, our manufactures are likely to experience a fresh surge in demand.
Our agricultural sector is likely to post a lower growth compared to last year. It seems that the period of high inflation forced our farmers to cut back on fertilizer inputs, leading to lower yields.
In the Philippines, we have not seen any significant enterprise closures so far, despite the global turbulence. That is a good sign that the economy is weathering this storm quite well. Abroad, large companies have either shut down or laid off workers. In the US, unemployment has sharply risen.
The Philippines has, historically, performed beneath the average growth of the region. But a seven percent forecasted growth for our neighboring economies means that there will be enough economic activity around us to keep our economy trudging ahead.
Still, for many corporations, it will still feel like a recession. Credit remains tight, even as monetary authorities hold down interest rates. Demand for some sectors will remain sluggish. After all, no one is certain if the global financial crisis has hit bottom.
The trend towards a more substantial reduction in our economic growth is not without remedy. The important thing is not to be complacent.
As we begin to close the year, we see a deficit figure that could balloon larger than expected if not managed more effectively. The dollar has surged and the peso has weakened.
Year 2009 will be a challenging year, no doubt. Government has to adopt a proactive posture. Every concerned citizen must take cognizance of the challenge as much as the private sector has, and go beyond business-as-usual in proposing more programs that will enhance our efforts to mitigate the ill effects of an economic slowdown.
The night is not entirely black, fortunately. Against the odds, the volume of remittance inflows to the country increased rather than decreased last month. That means we can expect only a marginal decline in domestic consumer demand — or even an increase, to help compensate for the nosedive in our export revenues.
What PCCI is Doing
PCCI has not been a passive observer in all of these. In fact, we have fine-tuned our advocacies to effectively address these crucial matters.
In fact, the PCCI has proposed the creation of P100-billion fund for infrastructure programs that would spur job creation and growth momentum. It is also a means to pump-prime the economy and shield the country amid the global economic slowdown.
Also, to sustain the country's growth and global competitiveness, we have to go back to basics and focus on four key areas over the coming years of my Presidency. These critical areas are fundamental to meeting the challenges brought about by globalization and the need for enhanced competition. We have summarized these initiatives under what we call PCCI's F.I.R.E. Programs for Competitiveness –
1. Food security and sufficiency
2. Infrastructure Development
3. Re-engineering the educational system; and
4. Energy self-sufficiency
Let me delve on them one by one:
Food Security and Sufficiency
Agriculture is considered as the fundamental source of employment and economic growth in the country. The development of this sector is, therefore, essential to any development effort geared towards the alleviation of poverty and enhancing the food security of the country.
Infrastructure Development
Infrastructure is one of the key factors that directly affect the country's global competitiveness, ability to attract investments, and economic growth. An efficient transport network will reshape the country's physical and economic configuration. From fragmented and island economies, the country will develop a unified and integrated economy where people and goods can move and trade swiftly and efficiently.
Re-engineering the Educational System
According to the Commission on Higher Education, only 40% college graduates are able to land jobs immediately after graduation. The rest join the increasing number of unemployed. This is caused by a plethora of causes, one of which is the mismatch between the available jobs in the market and skills of the graduates.
PCCI, through the Presidential Task Force on Education, will continue to be the catalyst in the promotion of a closer cooperation between higher education and industry that will generate commitments from both sides to prepare graduates for gainful employment or entrepreneurship. The coverage of this program and the private participation it requires need to be widened, simultaneous to enlarging PCCI's role in Employment S.T.O.R.E ( or School to Office Response to Employment System) where industry demand for specific openings are matched under a ladderized system of job entry through on-the-job training or apprenticeship.
Energy Self-Sufficiency
PCCI's main advocacy on energy is to reduce power generation, transmission, and distribution costs to the consumers. Over the long-term, there is the need to advocate for more energy infrastructure projects to meet growing demand, the expansion of oil and gas exploration activities and incentives for investments in renewable energy and alternative fuel development.
Concluding Statement
It may be argued that what we are experiencing right now is the dawn of a new political economy. This is a new milieu that has gone beyond conservatives and liberals. This new world order is about accepting that profound change had happened and it is high time politics, economics, culture, and international institutions reflected it. It is about new realities and old virtues. It will be the era of new rules necessitating the need for new partnerships and rekindling old ones.
Unity is something that we would have to earn through great effort and determination.
So we ask you that we walk together, march together, and join together in one united voice. Even the weak become strong when they are united. Let us become a living testament to what a strong business sector can do by acting in unity.
Together, starting today, let us finish the work that needs to be done.
Thank you very much and I wish you all a successful Conference.
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