BAGUIO CITY – Remaining true to its mandate and in the efforts to help revive the economy, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) continues to aggressively promote the Philippines as a viable investment destination, especially for Indian investors engaged in different sectors.
This comes as PEZA, headed by Director General Charito “Ching” Plaza, hosted His Excellency Shambhu S. Kumaran, the Ambassador of India to the Republic of the Philippines, and the delegation from the India Business Forum Philippines Association, Inc. (IBF) for an investment promotions tour in Baguio City last November 26-30, 2021.
The group has chosen to visit Baguio City as they believed that the economic potential as well as weather conditions and natural attractions in the city, moreso the province itself, will be an advantage for both foreign and local investors as an option for future investments.
Aside from the tour, PEZA likewise conducted the Global Biz with PEZA featuring India, 13th in a series of forums for this year, last November 28, 2021.
Some of the Indian companies have already expressed their interest to locate and even expand their operations to the northern part of the country. Moreover, companies are also expected to invest through PEZA and help in the transfer of technology, generation of jobs, and increase the economic activities of people.
PEZA also encouraged companies to register with PEZA in order to enjoy the tax incentives being provided under Republic Act No. 7916 or The Special Economic Zones Act of 1995 and Republic Act No. 11534 or the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act.
“PEZA as a one-stop and non-stop shop, will definitely assist our investors in their applications and also in looking for local partners for their investment activities,” assured Plaza.
PEZA also strengthens its collaborations with various groups in order to help bring investors to the country especially during this time. With this, PEZA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the India Business Forum Association Philippines Inc. (IBF) for the group to become a Ka-PIPPs.
The PEZA Investment Promotion Partnership or Ka-PIPPs program seeks to establish a partnership with various agencies, associations, and individuals to encourage foreign direct investment inflows to PEZA ecozones. For this MOU, both PEZA and the IBF will work hand-in-hand to promote the country’s economic potential to Indian investors.
The partnership is also in line with PEZA’s initiatives which seeks to fully industrialize the country and transform it into a self-reliant, self-sustaining, and resource-generating economy.
According to Director General Plaza, “PEZA’s efforts would not come to fruition without the help of our Ka-PIPPs who play a very important role in helping PEZA continue its mandate of promoting investments, creating employment, and generating exports in the Philippines even during this time.”
The PEZA Chief also looks forward to increasing the registered companies under PEZA with the partnership and the positive response from the Indian delegates. Plaza reported that “there are 29 Indian enterprises registered with PEZA to date. These companies contribute a cumulative total of Php 10.315 Billion of investments since 1995 until September 2021. As of August 2021, these companies also employ 21,950 workers and contribute $ 181 Million USD of exports.”
For his part, Mr. Dileep Tiwari, IBF President noted that “This partnership will pave the way for a new relationship between PEZA and IBF. Some IBF Members are already interested to open an office in PEZA economic zones. Also, some members who are non-information technology-business process outsourcing, like those coming from the pharmaceutical background are also considering.”
Senior IBF members present during the event included Mr. Jaideep Pradhan (EXL Service); Mr. Pushkar Mishra (HGS); Mr. Shiju Verghese (TCS); Mr. Sanjay Vohra (Transrail Lighting); Mr. Animesh Jain (RM Chemicals); Mr. Venkatachalapathy Swaminathan (TVS Motor Company); Mr. Nitender Rao (Lgorithm Solutions); Mr. Thumkesh Khera (Preventia Healthcare); Ms. Aparna Veera (Taskus); Mr. Rishi Pradhan (Conduent); Mr. Manan Mehta (Collabera); Mr. Vikram Kochar (Shearwater) among others. Mr. Nishikant Singh, First Secretary (Economic and Commerce) was coordinator of the event from the Embassy of India.
Donations to Baguio
To show their sincerest appreciation to the warm welcome to the province, the IBF donated motorcycles by Indian automobile company, TVS Motor Company, to Baguio City, Tuba, and the Baguio City Economic Zone (BCEZ).
During the flag raising ceremony at the Baguio City Hall Grounds, India Business Forum Association Philippines Inc. (IBF) donated various medical supplies and also pledged to donate P4 Million worth of assorted COVID-19 medicines, to the Baguio City.
“This is an essential medicine that will help us address [the COVID-19 variant] Omicron,” said Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong.
Meanwhile, the IBF President said that, “I’m sure this medicine will help the government to end the fight against COVID-19.” Ambassador Kumaran also hoped that more Indian medicine which has high efficacy rate in curing COVID will be available to the Philippines.
The PEZA Chief noted, “We believe that PEZA, India, and the Baguio City’s strong partnership will be vital in our plans for the recovery of the country and in furthering our economic relations.”
“We have a lot to offer. Hence, let us strive to do our best to ensure the attractiveness of the Philippines and continue to attract investors to the country, achieving our goal of making the country self-reliant, self-sustaining, and resource generating country,” added Plaza.