PEZA Investment Approvals up by 107.15%in April

Pasay City – With strengthened investment promotion and facilitation efforts, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has recorded an increase of 107.15% in investments for the January to April period.

“From January to April 2023, PEZA has approved a total of 60 new and expansion projects worth Php 33.094 Billion investments, which is 107.15% higher as compared to the Php 15.975 Billion approved investments on the same period in 2022,” reported PEZA Director General Tereso O. Panga.

For the same period, the projects are also expected to generate about US$ 1.012 billion exports and create 7,469 direct jobs.

April Board approval
This comes as the PEZA Board greenlighted 14 new and expansion projects expected to bring in PhP 20.556 Billion investments and create2,233 jobs.

Among these 14 projects, seven (7) are into logistics service enterprise, four (4) into export manufacturing, and three (3) IT enterprises. These projects will be located in Baguio, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Cebu, and South Cotabato.

The biggest project pre-qualified by the PEZA Board for FIRB approval is engaged in the manufacturing of biomass fuel products made from Buyo-buyo(Piper aduncum-shrub), with investments worth PhP 19.701 Billion.

Increase in PEZA exports

For the first quarter of the year, PEZA also recorded a total of US$ 15.753 Billion actual exports despite the recent report of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on widening trade deficit.

Panga said, “In March alone, we have generated US$5.396 billion export revenues which account for 82.65% of the total country's US$6.528 Billion exports in March this year.

Strengthened investment promotions

“We believe that we are now reaping the results of the ongoing investment missions of President Ferdinand Marcos and his administration’s investment initiatives and it is now up to us to follow through the pledges,” explained Panga.

The PEZA Chief noted, “We remain positive that more investments will come to the Philippines withthe big-ticket investments that we secured during the President's visits to Japan, US, and Switzerland among others.”

The US$1.3 billion in investment pledges and 6,700 jobs generated from the President's trip to the US is an indication of the American investors' renewed interest in the country. Based on the investment climate statement on the Philippines by the US Department of State, “The business environment is notably better within the special economic zones, particularly those available for export businesses operated by PEZA, known for its regulatory transparency, no red-tape policy, and one- stop shop services for investors.”

With the recently working visits of the President and his key cabinet and business delegation to the US, UK, Indonesia, Panga stated that, “We hope to attract FDI in advanced manufacturing, EV industry, RE development, mineral processing, regenerative agriculture, and frontier technologies particularly in digital health, fintech, blockchain, AI and big data—to boost our mix of industries and value-adding in the ecozones.” 

50 KMME Mentees of R12 Presented their Business Improvement Plans to Panel of Industry Experts

KORONADAL CITY, SOUTH COTABATO – The Department of Trade and Industry 12 (DTI-12) has facilitated the successful Business Improvement Plan (BIP) presentation of 50 budding entrepreneurs who are enrolled in this year’s 2nd batch of the Kapatid Mentor Micro Enterprises – Money, Market Encounter (KMME-MME) through a simultaneous sessions conducted in the provinces of Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato, North Cotabato, and Sarangani, and the city of General Santos on September 14 to 15, 2022.

The enrolled entrepreneurs dubbed as mentees under the KMME-MME Program were from the different priority industries of Region 12, and have undergone ten online modules of lectures, coaching, and mentoring covering the varied aspects of entrepreneurship.

As a final requirement, the mentees must successfully present and defend their BIPs to a panel of industry experts and practitioners representing the government sector, financial institution, business sector, and marketing and promotion industry.

In his message to the South Cotabato mentees, DTI-12 OIC-Assistant Regional Director Rictoniel Reginio said that the BIP presentation is a culmination to test the aptitude of the mentees after having undergone a series of rigorous lectures and coaching sessions.

“The presentation is an exercise to test how our mentees can convince the panel if their Business Improvement Plan is workable. We hope that at the end of your presentation, our panel of evaluators from the financial institutions will offer their business financing program so you can expand your business,” said Reginio.

In a separate interview, DTI-12 OIC-Regional Director Flora Politud-Gabunales expressed her congratulations to the mentees for having completed the ten module sessions and for the successful presentation of their BIPs. She also mentioned that DTI through the Negosyo Center Business Counselors will be monitoring and assisting the mentees in the execution of their respective plans.

The KMME-MME is a coaching and mentoring program of DTI in partnership with the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship (PCE) – Go Negosyo that optimizes the interactions between the mentors and the mentees through a ten-module program with the key goal of boosting the entrepreneurial capacity through improved access to Mentorship, Money & Market (3Ms).

Premiered in 2016, a total of 497 entrepreneurs in Region 12 have graduated from the KMME-MME since the program was launched by DTI together with the PCE (Go Negosyo).