President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday secured billions of pesos worth of investment pledges from Japanese companies engaged in semi-conductors, electronics and wiring harness.
More than 10,000 jobs are projected to be generated by these investments, according to the President’s economic team, which will be an added boost to the Marcos administration’s push for more jobs for Filipinos.
President Marcos presided over the roundtable meeting attended by Japan’s semiconductor and electronics industries looking to expand their operations in the Philippines.
The total amount of investment commitment will be announced by the President tomorrow, February 10, during the signing of the letters of intent by the Japanese companies.
In his speech, the President said the country aspires to become “hubs of excellence for sectors where we have a natural comparative advantage.”
“We want the country to attain the status as a regional hub for printers, wiring harnesses, and other electronic goods,” the President pointed out.
“We consider your operations significant. You are a prime generator of jobs. You provide support for sectors critical to industrial development and you carry with you the promise to create value through innovation in global manufacturing around the world,” Marcos added.
According to the President, the country’s base of engineers, strong workforce, entrenched network of Japanese leading companies, and demonstrated history of success in the information technology services sectors “offers promise for future expansion.”
“With the automotive industry moving toward electric vehicles and autonomous driving and the printer industry facing challenges related to digitalization and automation, we hope to see you recruit our talented human resources in your R&D (research and development) activities,” the chief executive said.
Among those present in the meeting were top executives of Japan Aviation Electronics Industry, Ltd.; Yazaki Corporation; Yokowo Manufacturing of the Philippines; Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.; Brother Industries, Ltd.; IBIDEN Co., Ltd.; Seiko Epson Corporation; NIDEC-SHIMPO Corporation; and TDK Corporation.
In 2021, the Philippines was the fourth largest exporter of wiring harness in the world after Mexico, China, and Romania.
The Philippines is also one of the lowest cost producers of wiring harness in the world, based on exported value and quantity.
This trend has been building over a 20-year period where wiring harness exports from 2001 to 2021 grew at a steady pace of 9% per year. #
