The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has tapped the World Bank-International Finance Corp. (WB-IFC) to establish a certification process for the development of ecozone industrial parks (EIP) in the country.
In a statement on Wednesday, PEZA said it has identified five pilot ecozones as candidates for the WB-IFC ecozone industrial parks certification process.
PEZA is banking on the WB-IFC’s advisory services and technical assistance for processing the following candidates:
Lima Technology Center, First Philippine Industrial Park, Laguna Technopark, Light Industry and Science Park, and Carmelray Industrial Park.
These zones will serve as “testbeds” for integrating sustainability into a business strategy that will attract more investments despite an increasingly competitive global environment where other countries are also pursuing certification for their EIPs.
Through this free technical assistance project, the WB-IFC will support PEZA in benchmarking the EIP frameworks adopted by other countries within their economic zone sectors.
The WB-IFC will also review the enabling laws and regulations for possible adoption in the Philippines.
With the WB-IFC’s assistance, a global voluntary certification system will be developed to ensure a transparent and comparable performance across industrial zones, PEZA said.
The goal of having a global voluntary certification system is to boost the adoption of sustainability standards in industrial parks, freeports, and economic zones, it added.
Citing the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, PEZA said an eco-industrial park is “a community of businesses located on a common property.”
In this ecosystem “businesses seek to achieve enhanced environmental, economic, and social performance through collaboration in managing environmental and resource issues,” PEZA said.
“This concept enables companies to gain a competitive advantage through the physical exchange of materials, energy, water, and by-products—thereby fostering inclusive and sustainable development,” it added.
As the country shifts toward the EIP model, PEZA Director-General Tereso Panga said they are “optimistic” their 427 economic zones and the country’s freeports “will adopt the EIP framework and green growth strategies.”
The country’s ecozone must evolve beyond existing simply as viable locations for foreign direct investments, he said.
“They must now enable industrial symbiosis, climate resilience, green infrastructure, and energy efficiency to ensure sustainable growth while upholding social responsibility, environmental stewardship, and ethical excellence,” Panga added.
