Business leaders Teresita Sy-Coson and Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala in separate fora offered their insights on how the Philippines can weather the global economic challenges and still achieve growth.
Speaking at the Philippine Business Conference and Expo (PBCE) at the Manila Hotel yesterday, Coson said the Philippines needs to bide its time in reaping the fruits of various efforts poured into propping the country’s potential to global investors.
Speaking at the Ayala Integrated Summit on Tuesday, Zobel urged businesses to put more resources into sustainability to secure an “equitable” growth and future for all.
Coson, BDO Unibank Inc. chairman, said external factors that beset the economy make it hard for the Philippines to attract foreign investments, a situation that is not unique to the Philippines.
“Everybody knows there’s a global problem. The US dollar is very strong so most investments go back to the US. We have a lot of (good) fundamentals here (but) it will take a little while for them to bear fruits,” Sy-Coson told the PBCE delegates.
Sy-Coson said despite this, the Philippines has a lot of elements that could drive up growth.
She said the Philippines should be able to “make our policy easier for foreign investors to come in, tak(ing) into considerations … the risks.”
Zobel meanwhile said the last two years have shown that businesses “are called to become steward leaders, with a responsibility to care for future generations, the environment, and society at large.”
“It is this mindset of stewardship and guiding principle of creating shared value that will pave the way towards long-term resilience, sustainability, and equality. The profound challenges that businesses face today demand a culture of transformation, guided by a tenacity and desire for lasting change,” said Zobel, Ayala Corp. chair.
In his speech, Zobel noted a number of Ayala initiatives towards sustainability, which include units Ayala Land Inc. and AC Energy Corp.’s completion of their greenhouse gas emissions baselining in their value chains.
The Ayala Group is bringing new technologies for expanded access to sustainable energy and mobility.
AC Motors will start selling the electric car Kia EV6 starting in January 2023 while unit Integrated Microelectronics Inc. is manufacturing in its Laguna facility, electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and adjacent technologies within the EV ecosystem.
“In pursuing the right balance of profit and purpose, we will continue to create innovative solutions that will empower communities and scale our businesses for affordable, relevant and socially meaningful products and services,” Zobel said.
