‘We are ready’ – DTI ‘Non-tariff barriers are a challenge’ – PCCI

“We are ready for the ASEAN Economic Community. We are very competitive,” declared Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory L. Domingo as the ASEAN economic integration moves closer to reality a few days from now.

Outside Singapore, Domingo said, the Philippines is the most competitive.

“We are ready because we were the first to liberalize in the region and so we already know how to compete. Trade liberalization is good for us,” he added noting that other ASEAN countries have more restrictions than us.

Naturally, investments would flow into a country where there are lesser business restrictions.

Domingo even stressed that the country’s liberalized economy has prepared businesses to compete in the global arena long before the AEC comes into force.

But business leader Alfredo M. Yao has cautioned that while Filipino businesses can easily look for foreign partners because doing business in the country has become very cheap, non-tariff barriers (NTBs) have also become more prevalent, not just in ASEAN but non-ASEAN countries, as well.

“It is very cheap to do business here so we can look for partners, but we are talking here of zero tariff, which means we have to look at the non-tariff side,” Yao pointed out.

He cited the case of the banking sector, which has been fully liberalized, but which the other ASEAN countries still heavily protect.

“We should look at non-tariff barriers,” stressed Yao.

While it is the private sector’s lookout, Yao has urged government to ensure that domestic industries are not being disadvantaged by the NTBs being implemented by other ASEAN countries.

“The government should assign one czar/trade attaché per country to just monitor the NTBs of other trading parties,” he said.

source:  Manila Bulletin

Localize plans to benefit from ASEAN integration, business, gov’t leaders told

CEBU CITY -- With the completion of a national game plan for ASEAN integration, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is encouraging regional government and business leaders to localize the plan and craft their own regional industry road maps.

Trade Undersecretary Zenaida C. Maglaya said existing industry clusters in each region are encouraged to look at the national game plan and check how they can relate to it.

“There are peculiarities in each region. You cannot just give the plan to them and ask them to implement it. They have to see whether the plan applies to them. One thing good about bringing it down is that there will be buy-in by the private sector. Eventually, they will own the plan. It will become their regional plan,” she said in a press conference on the sidelines of a forum here on the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Economic Community (AEC) game plan.

The AEC game plan consists of industry road maps that the private sector, with the assistance of government agencies, crafted. As of Monday, Trade Assistant Secretary Rafaelita M. Aldaba said 30 sectors have completed national road maps and submitted these to the Board of Investments while 22 others, including those which are still undergoing rapid industry assessment, are working on theirs.

Of the 22 sectors, the road maps for jewelry, bamboo, coco coir, creative industries and gold are in the final stages of development.

These road maps form the building blocks of the Manufacturing Industry Roadmap, which serves as the blueprint for the Manufacturing Resurgence Program, as well as the Comprehensive National Industrial Strategy.

In Central Visayas, DTI Regional Director Asteria C. Caberte said that the agency has created technical working groups for the information and communications technology, human resources, agriculture, tourism, retail, furniture, and creative sectors.

Some of the road maps were crafted and funded solely by the private sector while others were drawn up with the assistance of the government and foreign funds.

Among the strong industry sectors that funded their road-mapping activities was the furniture sector, Ms. Maglaya said. Other sectors, such as the auto parts and IC design sectors, are getting assistance from the EU-Philippines Trade Related Technical Assistance Project.

In her keynote speech during the forum, Ms. Maglaya said most of the industry sectors have realized “that they really have to go big because the market is getting bigger. They cannot work as individuals, they need the industry. When orders come and one company alone cannot meet it, that company will lose the order,” she said.

The AEC aims to establish a single market and production base with free movement of goods, services and investments across the 10 ASEAN member countries by end-2015. Tariffs on 99.6% of products traded within the region have already been eliminated.

The Philippines, for its part, has 439 policy commitments such as the adoption of open skies, trade facilitation and passage of a competition law, among others.

source:  Businessworld

Bangsamoro crucial to ASEAN integration

THE PROPOSED Bangsamoro political entity would be crucial to the upcoming integration of the Philippines into the Southeast Asian economic community because Mindanao “is our gateway to our ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] neighbors.”

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) issued this statement on Tuesday, adding that regional development brought on by a more stable situation would be vital in boosting the national economy.

“When we achieve peace in the Bangsamoro, we will accelerate progress in an entire region whose growth has been stunted through four decades by armed conflict,” chief government negotiator Miriam Colonel-Ferrer said.

She added that “collaborative programs and mechanisms are already being created and set in motion in order to support conflict-affected MILF communities towards a smooth transition into the Bangsamoro era.”

The so-called Sajahatra Bangsamoro Program (SBP), meanwhile, had already been mobilized to improve the delivery of basic services and implement livelihood program in Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) communities, as part of initial preparations for the political entity’s formation, which would be created by a bill currently expected to be approved by the Congress in February.

Top economists have previously noted that with its proximity to the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), Mindanao should be able to better reap the touted benefits of integration.

Optimistic about the Bangsamoro deal, oil palm companies have recently expressed interest in the Mindanao region for plantation sites.

CALLS FOR FEDERALISM IN DAVAO
In Davao City, calls for a shift to a federal form of government were renewed, initiated by the informal group Council of Leaders of Mindanao, which organized a forum about the matter on Monday.

Davao Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte, a member of the Council of Leaders and organizer of the forum, said discussions on federalism is important now that the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) is being deliberated on by Congress and public consultations are being held around the country.

“The catalyst is the BBL because if you do not give to other regions the same, there will be a clamor,” said Mr. Duterte. “Both these proposals (BBL and federalism) would provide mechanisms for equal opportunities to all groups in the country,” he added.

Among those in the forum was former military officer Alexander Noble, representing indigenous people (IP) communities, who have expressed fear of losing rights and being marginalized once the BBL is passed and implemented.

Mr. Noble, a leader of the Reform the Armed Forces Movement during the time of the late President Corazon C. Aquino, said while several indigenous groups are opposing the creation of the Bangsamoro territory, they believe that federalism would address their concerns through the formation of IP states.

Also in attendance were Catholic Church leaders, including Davao Archbishop Emeritus Fernando D. Capalla, who is also chair of the interreligious group Bishops Ulama Conference.

Mr. Capalla, while stressing his support for federalism is personal and not representative of the Catholic Church nor the Ulama group, said a federal form of government will be a solution to an “incompetent and morally bankrupt” government.

Federalism, he said, will ensure the “adequate and humane promotion of the common good.”

The Council of Leaders of Mindanao include Governor Jose Maria R. Zubiri, Jr. of Bukidnon, Reuben Canoy of the Radio Mindanao Network, former Transportation and Communications secretary Pantaleon D. Alvarez, former Zamboanga Rep. Romeo G. Jalosjos, and former Cagayan de Oro City mayor Vicente Y. Emano.

The group has also gathered support from leaders in the Visayas. -- Vince Alvic Alexis F. Nonato and Carmelito Q. Francisco

source:  Businessworld