MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Magandang tanghali, Malacañang Press Corps, and welcome to our press briefing ngayong araw, October the 17th.
In this morning’s sectoral meeting led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Department of Trade and Industry gave an update on the status of investment leads generated during past presidential visits.
To give us more information on this, we are joined by DTI-Board of Investments Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo. Magandang tanghali, Usec. Rodolfo.
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Magandang tanghali, Daphne. Magandang tanghali po sa lahat ng ating mga manunood, tagapanood at sa ating mga kaibigan sa Malacañang Press Corps. Thank you.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Go ahead with the briefing.
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Kagagaling po natin sa isang pagpupulong sa ating Presidente, binigyan ho natin siya ng updates tungkol sa mga investment leads and pledges that resulted from the presidential visits. Hindi ho unique ito, lagi ho nating ginagawa ito with the President; si President Marcos Jr. ho ay very meticulous in terms of really looking at the results of the presidential visits.
Doon ho sa ating naibigay sa kaniyang update, natutuwa ho tayo at nasabi natin sa kaniya na iyong kaniyang mga presidential visits have been resulting to actual investment registrations and approvals doon ho sa ating mga investment promotion agencies. Ako po ay galing sa Board of Investments, about 80% po ng mga total FDI registration … a total investment registration sa Pilipinas ay dumadaan po sa BOI.
Natutuwa ho tayo na binanggit sa ating mahal na Pangulo na from January to September of this year, ang investment approvals po ng BOI ay umaabot na sa 734 billion pesos. Kung ikukumpara po ito noong January to September of 2022, umabot lang po tayo noon ng 362 billion pesos or an increase of 102%.
Ang maganda rin ho dito ay hindi lang iyong actual investment amount pero iyong composition. Makikita ho natin na iyong composition ng investments ho natin, malaki na rin ho iyong tinatawag nating foreign investments kasi ho sa BOI, we approved both foreign and local investments. Typically ho in the past, ang ating local investments ho sa BOI, about 80% of the total investment amount na approved ng BOI. Pero ngayon ho, nakikita natin, 60% ho ang foreign so naging 20% na lang ho ang local. So, hindi lang ho tumaas iyong investment approvals, mas dumami pa ho iyong foreign component of the approvals.
Kung titingnan ho natin iyong foreign component ho mismo, ang total approved registrations po sa BOI ay umaabot ng 427 billion pesos. Kung ikukumpara ninyo ho iyon sa same period of last year, it’s actually a 4,150% increase. So kung titingnan natin, saan ba talaga may direct impact iyong mga presidential visits – it’s actually in the foreign investments portion of the approvals of the Board of Investments at kasama rin ho halimbawa iyong mga foreign approvals ni PEZA (Philippine Economic Zone Authority) at iba pa hong mga IPAs (Investment Promotion Agencies).
Napakalaking bagay din ho kung titingnan din natin, hindi lang iyong composition noong foreign pero saang bansa nanggagaling iyong mga investments na ito. Mayroon hong directly engaged doon sa mga presidential visits at very important ho iyong mga paghahanda na ginagawa ho ng buong gobyerno in preparation for these visits.
Kagaya na lang halimbawa po, maalala ninyo noong November, isa po sa mga napakahalagang policy-initiatives na ginawa ng administrasyon ni President Marcos Jr., in particular headed by… in this particular case, si Secretary Fred Pascual, si Secretary Popo Lotilla at saka si Secretary Remulla – iyon pong pagtanggal ng foreign equity restrictions on renewable energy projects. This happened I think noong November of last year, just in time para doon sa pagbisita ni Presidente doon sa Brussels for the ASEAN-EU Summit.
Napakalaking bagay ho noon kasi makikita ninyo ngayon iyong resulta noong mga pumapasok ho sa atin, madami ho doon sa binanggit kong 427 billion pesos worth of foreign projects are actually in the renewable energy sector; tapos marami ho doon nanggagaling sa Europe.
Tapos ho, hindi lang iyong visit na iyon mismo pero pati ho iyong mga pagtanggap ni Presidente sa mga bisita na nanggagaling sa ibang bansa. Kamukha halimbawa kung maalala ninyo just a few months ago, pumunta ho dito iyong European Council President, si Madam Ursula von der Leyen tapos napakaganda ho noong mga naging mensahe doon including the resumption of our FTA (Free Trade Agreements) negotiations with the EU.
So, in summary, tumataas ho ang ating foreign investment approvals and registrations in Investment Promotion Agencies; napakalaki na ho ng share ngayon ng foreign direct investments. Tapos, doon ho sa mga bansa na typically hindi natin nakita in the past years to have been investing in the Philippines – ito ho iyong mga pumapasok and ito rin ho… kasama dito iyong mga bansang pinuntahan ho ni Presidente.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay, thank you. Questions? We’ll start with Harley Valbuena, DZME.
HARLEY VALBUENA/DZME: Hello, good morning po. Usec., doon po sa nabanggit ninyo na 427 billion pesos na approved foreign investments, na-track po ba natin kung magkano doon iyong nanggaling or na-acquire from the presidential visits of PBBM?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Iyong makikita ninyo kasi talaga, by the nature of the 427 billion, I would say about 90% of that have been in the sector of renewable energy at saka galing sa EU countries. So, we are counting that really as having been significantly related to the visit of the President.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Jean Mangaluz.
JEAN MANGALUZ/INQUIRER.NET: Good morning. So—
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Sorry. Ang tatanggalin ko, ‘di ba sinabi natin kanina 734 billion iyong total approvals. So, tinatanggal namin doon iyong local portion which is the 307 billion; so siyempre iyon, hindi iyon affected by the presidential visit. Tapos, iyong natitirang 427 billion, I would say really are directly affected by the presidential visit because of the countries where they came from and the sector that were the recipients of these investments. Thank you, Harley.
JEAN MANGALUZ/INQUIRER.NET: Hi. So, these are pledges. So, has the DTI tracked how much the 2022 to 2023, how much is it completely manifested on paper or through projects?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Ang track record ho natin sa Board of Investments over the past ten years is that about 80% of the projects that register, actually continue on to implement their projects – iyong mga nagkakatotoo.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Dwight de Leon, Rappler.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: Usec., saang bansa po pinakamalaki nakuha iyong pledges?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Germany.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: Germany. And, ano po iyong mga sinasabi ninyong bansa na hindi nag-invest in the past na …?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Normally, kung makikita mo … hindi siya nagpunta sa Germany pero nagpunta siya sa Brussels – doon tayo nagkaroon noong ating tinatawag na roundtable discussions at saka mga forum kung saan mayroon tayong separate roundtable discussions with renewable energy projects.
In the past, makikita natin ‘di ba, hindi naman tayo naging darling of EU countries because of some reasons. Pero ngayon nakikita natin that when the President has said we are open for business at saka nakikita naman nila iyong mga policy reforms dito sa Pilipinas, pumapasok po sila.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: Sir, magkano iyong sa Germany po?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: I would say 80% of the 427 billion have come from Germany. Pero marami pa iyang nasa pipeline ha, marami tayo ngayong nasa pipeline particularly for renewable energy projects. Ang nakikita natin, iyong isang kaibahan ng mga investments na pumapasok dito, they have been focusing mainly on, I’d say, three to four sectors, three to four sectors that have the capacity to really transform our economy: Number one, renewable energy; pagkatapos number two, telecoms. Makikita ninyo iyong mga data towers natin, iyong third party telco towers. Tapos number three would be in mineral processing. Although, hindi pa sila nag-i-invest but tina-track natin ngayon. We are actively engaged with the private sector companies and their prospective foreign partners pagdating, in particular, for nickel processing. In this particular case, hindi siya European; mostly Chinese companies, South Korean and Japanese companies iyong pumapasok sa nickel processing. Pagkatapos iyong pang-apat, iyong high-tech manufacturing.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: Sir, ano po iyong next top investors aside from Germany?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: The next investors would then be iyong Japan. Kung titingnan din natin, hindi lang sa BOI, titingnan natin particular din sa PEZA, east Asian countries, Japan, South Korea, malaki po iyong mga investments that we are getting from them.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: Sir, uulitin ko lang, sabi ninyo kanina may mga countries na before hindi nag-i-invest sa Pilipinas pero ngayon—
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Hindi naman, but maliit. Hind ganoon kalaki.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: And what countries are these, sir?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Mga EU member countries because of our … some other reasons.
DWIGHT DE LEON/RAPPLER: Okay, sir. Thank you.
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Thank you.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Maricel Halili, TV 5.
MARICEL HALILI/TV5: Hello, sir. Sir, magkano po iyong kabuuang nagastos ng gobyerno doon sa mga biyahe ni Presidente para lang po maibangga doon sa nakuha nating investment?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Hindi ko … iyong information na iyon po, pasensiya na, wala sa DTI or sa Board of Investments.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Alvin Baltazar, PBS.
ALVIN BALTAZAR/PBS: Usec., good morning po. Usec., ano iyong mga factors para makumbinsi iyong mga investors at eventually mag-invest sila dito sa Pilipinas? Maganda ba iyong tiwalang ipinagkakaloob under the new leadership of the President?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Maganda iyong tiwala na binibigay nila sa atin. Iyong mga factors na nakikita natin, number one, may mga policy-related factors including iyong continuation of the policy reform. You would note na ‘di ba, sa past administration, mayroon naman tayong naipasok na na mga policy reforms including, halimbawa, iyong CREATE, Retail Trade Liberalization, etc.
But very important, pagpasok ng administrasyon na ito, iyong implementation, doon tayo naka-focus and further removal of the remaining restrictions. Halimbawa na nga iyong sinabi ko kanina, napakalaki kasing bagay noon eh, iyong removal of the foreign equity restriction on renewable energy. Kaya kitang-kita mo iyong direct correlation between when the Department of Energy, as instructed by the President, removed that, kita mo kaagad iyong pasok ng mga foreign investments doon.
Tapos pangalawa, nakikita naman ng mga investors natin iyong sinasabi ko in implementing the reform measures na nagawa na dati, iyong pag-implement noon, iyong government really having close collaboration with the private sector on adjusting the challenges in implementation. Kanina, doon sa sectoral meeting, binigyan-diin ni Presidente, number one, kailangan talaga focused tayo in facilitating these strategic investments via the green lane, hindi ba nag-issue siya ng Executive Order # 18 noong February of this year. Binanggit din natin kay Presidente na mayroon na tayo ngayong 11 projects that have been registered under that green lane, tapos with a total of about 300 billion pesos-worth of project investments doon.
Tapos pangalawa, sinabi rin niya, tingnan natin iyong mga batas na gawa na nga and ini-implement kagaya halimbawa ng CREATE Law, ano iyong mga adjustments na kailangan nating tingnan diyan. So, halimbawa, nakikinig ho ang gobyerno sa ating mga namumuhunan at saka sa ating mga workers kung ano iyong mga nagiging problema, including for example, doon sa mga issues on the VAT.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Sam Medenilla, Business Mirror.
SAM MEDENILLA/BUSINESS MIRROR: Sir, ask lang po namin. Prior po doon sa pagtanggal doon sa foreign equity restrictions, usually ilang percent lang po iyon ng FDIs iyong renewable energy?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Maliit na maliit. Parang hindi nga ako makaisip ng malaking investments ng foreign investment on renewable energy. Kapag sinabi nating renewable energy, tinanggalan natin ng equity restriction – solar, wind at saka tidal. Karamihan ng nag-i-invest dito have been local companies; siguro mayroong proportion ng FDI, but as minority partners. Gusto kasi nitong mga—actually, hanggang ngayon naman, kapag pumapasok iyong mga investors natin sa RE, mayroon pa ring local partner; ang kaibahan lang, puwede na silang pumasok as majority owner, iyon iyong naging kaibahan.
So, in short, wala akong maalala na big player na pumasok dito prior to the removal of the equity restriction on RE na foreign.
SAM MEDENILLA/BUSINESS MIRROR: Zero po talaga?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Hindi ko masabing zero, maaaring as a partner in a locally-invested project pero hindi malalaki.
SAM MEDENILLA/BUSINESS MIRROR: Tapos another question, sir. Iyong during po doon sa budget hearing noong August, nabanggit po ni Secretary Pascual na nine of 130 project investment leads during Marcos Jr.’s foreign trips iyong na-realize. Ngayon po, ano pong update doon sa mga na-realize doon sa 130 na projects?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Iyong binabanggit kasi ni Secretary Fred Pascual na nine na iyon, iyon iyong mga actual na nag-inaugurate na ng kanilang mga projects. Kagaya halimbawa, makikita—at least, may alam ako na dalawa. May dalawa pang nadagdag doon dahil in-attend-an ni Secretary Fred at saka ni Presidente iyong inauguration ng dalawang manufacturing factories na iyon. Tapos may alam ako na i-inaugurate pa na dalawang BPO companies na offices. So, I would say, may mga madadagdag na four to five, okay.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Undersecretary Rodolfo, maybe for some extra context, would you be able to share the percentage of foreign versus local investments before and now?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Thank you, Daphne. Before, 20% ang foreign, 80% iyong local; ngayon, 60% iyong foreign, 40% iyong local.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: So tumataas?
DTI-BOI USEC. RODOLFO: Tumataas. Hindi sa hindi natin binibigyan ng halaga iyong ating mga local investors, ibig sabihin lang, tumataas iyong investments in general.
MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Is that everything from Malacañang—okay. Well, thank you so much, Undersecretary Rodolfo. And thank you, Malacañang Press Corps. This concludes our press briefing today. Have a good afternoon.
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