THE Philippines will seek to become a top two destination within the region for foreign direct investment (FDI) by 2028, Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual said.
“Our dream target is to (have) the second highest FDI in ASEAN,” Mr. Pascual said in an interview with ANC on Monday.
He said the projections are based on the results of government investment promotion missions overseas.
In a separate interview on the sidelines of the Asian Regional Conference in Support of Accelerated Life Sciences Innovation on Monday, Mr. Pascual said that the numbers suggest there is a basis to aspire to higher FDI.
“As of now the total is $71 billion… So, it is possible to aspire to be at a higher level,” he said, citing the combined value of investment leads generated by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Board of Investments (BoI).
Mr. Pascual said that for this year, 16 big-ticket projects worth $1.2 billion are expected to flow in, nine of which are already operational.
He said that the remaining seven are registered with the BoI or the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and are awaiting implementation.
In total, he said 15 projects are being processed via the BoI’s Green Lane.
Some of the proposed projects are not registered but covered by “letters of intent or memoranda of understanding with their local partners, so it’s (only) a matter of time the investment (is realized),” he said. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
