The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) and the German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (GPCCI) are strengthening their collaboration to attract more German investors into the country.

'With our longstanding partnership with PEZA, we eagerly anticipate offering our unwavering support to foster the promotion of the Philippines among German investors,' GPCCI president Stefan Schmitz said in a courtesy visit to PEZA director general Tereso Panga.

During the visit, the GPCCI presented to PEZA the results of their bi-annual AHK World Business Outlook survey conducted among the GPCCI members, that covers various issues and concerns of German investors.

According to GPCCI, the results of the Spring 2023 survey revealed that the Philippines generally exhibited a better/higher result in the areas of economy, investments, employment, overall situation, and expectations.

In terms of investments, the survey revealed that 46 percent of the participating GPCCI members are likely to invest higher in the country within the next 12 months.

'Given the recent advancements in the EU-Philippines free trade agreement and the positive outcome of a successful economic briefing in Germany back in July, we are confident that many German businesses will increasingly consider investing in the Philippines,' Schmitz said.

GPCCI head of government affairs and data protection officer Yves Aguilos said this is a good opportunity for PEZA to look at and see that this is an upbeat for investments for the country for German investors.

'We are positive that with your help, we can amplify our brand of service so that as we promote ecozones, we create connectivity until such time that the Philippines is dotted with all ecozones and we can see, at best, ease of doing business in the country so that investors will be able to maximize their investments in the Philippines and we can be more competitive in the region,' Panga said.

Panga said the results of the surveys that compare the Philippines across ASEAN show a vibrant outlook for the country as an investment destination.

'In ASEAN now, Philippines is projected to have the highest GDP growth rate, making the Philippines one of the best performing economies in the region and we need to take advantage of that. We don't want to pass up on these opportunities. We can only realize these FDI leads if we're able to improve some more our ease and cost of doing business,' Panga said.

Apart from the updates on PEZA's plans and ongoing initiatives, GPCCI also raised some issues and concerns affecting German investors including the amendment of Republic Act 11534 or the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives of Enterprises (CREATE) and PEZA laws.

'We're glad that the President has already issued a compelling statement, directing concerned government offices to look into the CREATE, with the objective of amending it… so that immediately we can provide relief to our locators who are unable to fully enjoy their incentives,' Panga said.

According to Panga, these are the investors the country attracted because of that promise of benefits and incentives as contained in CREATE and in registration agreements with PEZA.

'I think that should be the starting point before we can echo the call of the President to global investors that the Philippines is the smart investment destination in the region and that the best time to invest in the Philippines is now. We need to honor our commitments,' Panga added.

The PEZA chief said the agency would ask Congress to amend the 28-year-old PEZA Law to be able to cope with the demands of agile locators and remain competitive worldwide amid the fast changing market trends.

PEZA currently hosts 40 registered German locator companies that contribute P42.865 billion worth of investments, $412.664 million in exports earnings and 21,005 direct jobs.

 

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