P239-B worth of investment projects now in implementation phase

FILE: CONSUMER PROTECTOR. Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual (center) and other DTI officials attend the budget hearing at the Senate in Pasay Ciy on Monday (Oct. 17, 2022). The agency has an approved funding of PHP8.442 billion under the 2023 National Expenditure Program. (PNA photo by Avito Dalan)

MANILA – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said Sunday that USD4.349 billion (about PHP239 billion) worth of investment projects under the Marcos administration are now in the implementation stage.

DTI Secretary Alfredo Pascual said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. directed him to ensure that the investment pledges are followed through.

“Ang marching order ni Pangulo ay pag-ibayuhin ang pagpa-follow up para masigurado yung investment ay maisasagawa nung mga nangako na magpapadala dito o ‘yung mga maglalagay ng investment sa ating bansa (The President’s marching order is to intensify follow-up to ensure that the investment will be carried out by those who promised to send here or those who will invest in our country),” Pascual said in a press statement.

Of these investment projects, a total of USD29.712 billion or PHP1.7 trillion are in the form of Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) and Letters of Intent (LOI).

A total of USD28.863 billion or PHP1.5 trillion worth of investment projects are now in the planning stages.

Marcos earlier announced that his administration has secured approximately USD62.926 billion or PHP3.48 trillion from his trips to China, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, the United States, and Belgium.

Pascual likewise assured that the Marcos administration is stepping up on efforts to make it easier to put up or renew businesses in the Philippines.

“Sisiguraduhin natin na ‘yung enabling environment ay maayos, ‘yung mga kailangang magawa ng mabilis [tulad ng] pagkuha ng permit, pagkuha ng mga lisensya ay mapabilis. Dahil ‘yang mga ganyan kapag may delay dyan, nakaka-turn off sa mga investor natin so kailangan natin ‘yang maayos (We will make sure that the enabling environment is in order, those that need to be done quickly [such as] obtaining permits, obtaining licenses will be expedited. Because of things like that, when there is a delay, our investors turn off, so we need to fix it),” he said.

“Mas lalo na dun sa time na iniimplemento na ‘yung mga produkto sa construction, dapat walang delay ano. Pagpapasok dito ng mga imported equipment, kailangang mabilis din na mapapalabas ating pier ng Bureau of Customs (Especially at the time when the construction products are being implemented, there should be no delay. Entry of imported equipment must also be quickly released from our pier by the Bureau of Customs),” he added.

As of Feb. 9, the DTI-Board of Investments (BOI) has approved PHP414.3 billion in total investment projects.

Earlier, Marcos said he believes it is “only a matter of time” before ordinary Filipinos start feeling the effects of economic growth as he welcomed the DTI’s move to approve PHP414 billion in the first 40 days of 2023.

This amount accounts for more than 40 percent of the PHP1 trillion investment target for the year.

Pascual, who chairs the BOI, revised the bureau’s investment approval targets from PHP1 trillion to PHP1.5 trillion this year.

On Thursday, Marcos issued an executive order establishing a “green lane” for strategic investments in government offices to attract more foreign investments.