A FEW days ago, I came across the findings of a global investment bank that identified the Philippines as one of the least preferred investment havens for companies seeking to exit China.
While we were advantaged by a young population — which translates into consumers — we were hampered by the lack of free trade agreements and poor infrastructure.
The report came out almost at the same time that the President was to deliver his State of the Nation Address — which made me wonder: do the President’s speechwriters make sure they read both the good and bad reviews of our country before crafting the speech?
Seems to me, listening to past SONAS, that the President of the Philippines is up there in the clouds when delivering his message to the people, the very people who have their feet (and ears and nose) on the ground and have a feel of what really is going on.
‘Southeast Asian economies are marching boldly into a new world economic order while
we swing and miss and are called out for strike two.’
Now comes another global investment bank, this time the German Deutsche Bank, with its own assessment of the competitiveness of various markets in Southeast Asia. And like the first one (which I will not identify as UBS or Union Bank of Switzerland)) Deutsche Bank has also come to the conclusion that the Philippines has a lot of ground to cover if it seeks to become a preferred investment haven in this part of the world.
Strike two.
This makes me wonder: what are our policymakers doing in reaction to two assessments by two leading global investment banks which come to almost the same conclusion? I would like to think that a crisis committee has been formed composed of the best and the brightest economists and lawyers and sociologists and whoever else who have been tasked to peruse the reports from cover to cover and come to the table with ideas because that’s how serious I think the situation is, at a moment when the global economy is on reset and we should be doing our darndest best to emerge a much more dynamic and competitive Philippines that punches above its weight globally.
That should be a challenging but exciting task, meetings full of arguments and debates as to which policy to adopt, which road to take, and which future to aspire for. But it should be fulfilling as well. Not to mention so late in the day.
Or maybe since it’s just strike two, we think we can wait because the next pitch might be a home run for the Philippines?
I’d rather we not be too complacent. Southeast Asian economies are marching boldly into a new world economic order while we swing and miss and are called out for strike two.
