Businessmen push 10 measures to enhance competitiveness

MANILA, Philippines – Local businessmen will present today 10 priority legislative measures to enhance business competitiveness to President Aquino during the third day of the Philippine Business Conference (PBC).

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) proposed the crafting of a National Industrialization Plan and a National Infrastructure Development Plan with a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework as some of the urgent measures for key sectors that have cross-cutting benefits and can generate the highest impact.

Likewise, the PCCI asked the government to define key energy and power objectives in terms of supply reliability and quality, rate/tariff, competitiveness and sustainability.

The other resolutions were ensuring stability and consistency of policies for the mining industry, review of the entire Philippine tax system, agriculture modernization with the full implementation of the agriculture and fisheries modernization act, investment promotions for the tourism industry, adoption of the business permit and licensing system (BPLS) as an integral part of the government’s business process reform initiatives, full implementation of the ecological solid waste management Act of 2000 and review the impact of existing trade agreements and provide strategic guidelines for future trade negotiations.

At the start of the new government’s term, the PCCI and partner business organizations submitted the 2010 business agenda identifying three priority areas that need to be immediately addressed for the country’s economic sector to be competitive and enable the realization of sustained and inclusive growth.

PCCI said the government has positively acted and concretely undertaken measures that are consistent with the business sector’s proposed reform agenda. In President Aquino’s first 100-day report, he cited among others, that procurement contracts earlier approved are now keenly reviewed, with a number of contracts cancelled and rebidded resulting in substantial savings in public works and agriculture projects. More efficient use of funds has allowed government savings to be channeled to social services such as in education, health and poverty reduction.

With the Millennium Challenge Corp.’s grant of $434 million to the government, efforts to reduce poverty by addressing corruption and building and rehabilitation of infrastructure, which will improve access of farmers, fisherfolks, cottage industries, micro and small enterprises to markets, will further raise the economic profile of the country, the PCCI said. –Ma. Elisa P. Osorio (The Philippine Star)