PH’s ‘proactive’ approach to boost investors’ confidence: PBBM

FILE: PBBM remarks during the High-Level Dialogue on Investing in Infrastructure for Resilience (PCO Photo)

MANILA – The Philippine government is taking a “proactive” approach and creating policies that will boost investors’ confidence, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said on Thursday (Manila time).

Marcos gave this assurance during the High-Level Dialogue on Investing in Infrastructure for Resilience during the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.

“We aim to raise the confidence of investors, especially those that will benefit the social sectors of health, education and agriculture. For this reason, we have taken a proactive approach,” Marcos said in his keynote speech.

This, as Marcos acknowledged the crucial role of the private sector in helping his administration develop the country’s infrastructure sector.

With the help of partners from the private sector, the Philippine government’s goal to transform the Philippines into an “equitable, prosperous and resilient” nation by 2040 is attainable, Marcos said.

“Through our Build, Better, More flagship program, we have placed infrastructure development as the pinnacle of our vision for an equitable, prosperous and resilient Philippines by 2040. We recognize the critical role of the private sector partners to enable the realization of these high goals,” he said.

Marcos said crafting several strategies, including the creation of the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC), will enable the government to sustain the Philippines’ economic growth.

He noted that the recent amendments to the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) Law address concerns about the financial viability and bankability of public-private partnerships, as well as on the potential delays that might impede the implementation of infrastructure projects.

He said pursuing “climate-resilient” infrastructure programs and projects is also a “top priority”, adding that the government has allocated around 9 percent of the national budget to support “conservation, climate change adaptation, and disaster risk reduction.”

“Whether natural or man-made, such disruptions and breakdowns have catastrophic indications for global businesses,” Marcos said.

“We have formulated many strategies so we can position the Philippines properly for the development and evolution of the new global economy,” he added.

The High-Level Dialogue on Investing in Infrastructure for Resilience brings together government and business leaders to talk on a more coordinated approach and identify infrastructure investment strategies to support a more resilient and inclusive global economy in the face of disruptions such as the pandemic, climate crisis and conflict in other countries.

On the right track

Marcos is “on the right track” in involving the private sector, especially in developing the country’s infrastructure, said Gokul Laroia, chairperson for Asia Pacific of Morgan Stanley.

Laroia made the statement during his meeting with Marcos on the sidelines of the WEF on Wednesday, according to the Presidential Communications Office’s (PCO) news release.

“Because you know there’s a lot to work with in the Philippines, as you said, the supply side dynamics need to improve,” Laroia, as quoted by the PCO, said.

“We’re seeing some evidence of diversification of supply chains, the need to have the infrastructure benefit from that. So all of these can be a vicious cycle,” he added.

There was also a commitment from Morgan Stanley, an American multinational investment firm, to invest in the Philippines by setting up an office in Manila to support the Marcos administration’s development agenda.

Center on technological collaboration

Meantime, WEF founder and executive chairperson Klaus Schwab has invited the Philippines to join a center that will be established to allow nations to develop economically by working and sharing the newest technologies, PCO Secretary Cheloy Garafil said in a statement on Thursday.

Garafil said the invitation was extended to the Philippines during Marcos’ meeting with Schwab in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday.

“During a meeting with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in Davos, Switzerland, Schwab said there is a lot of excitement and engagement in the forum and the WEF wants to reinforce cooperation by putting up a center for joint cooperation on new technologies,” she said.

Schwab, Garafil said, told Marcos that the organization now has several service centers working on the newest technologies like artificial intelligence.

The organization also has a center in San Francisco that looks into crypto and blockchain, Schwab said.

Schwab said a lot of discussion on the internet on three-dimensional, virtual interaction communities combined with artificial intelligence encouraged WEF to develop a global collaboration platform.

“And the idea is to share their own experience. It’s always in support of technology,” he said. “When we inaugurate it, we will invite the Philippines to be amongst the first countries to have a… we call it a residence where you can showcase your investment opportunities in a much more effective manner compared to video conferencing because you bring people in the next of what’s happening.”

Marcos said he would task the Department of Information and Communications Technology to engage with the WEF as it hands over materials to the Philippines as a starting point.