Amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo urged Filipino businessmen to capitalize on global business opportunities and trends to recover, one of which is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

 

Speaking at the PCCI North Luzon Joint Induction and General Membership Meeting held recently, Arroyo said that the Philippines should look into the local and global economic prospects that have impacts on the country’s economic growth and recovery.

 

Arroyo cited the economic opportunities provided by RCEP, especially in terms of market access for Philippine exports, which potentially account for 30 percent of world trade, 30 percent of world GDP, and 47 percent of global outward FDI in the region's economy of 2.3 billion people.  RCEP is considered as the world’s largest FTA signed in November 2020 after years of negotiation by ASEAN, Australia, China, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand.

 

She then called on the private sector to lobby in Congress for the RCEP ratification so that the Philippine business, including MSMEs, could enjoy its full benefits. The country, she added, could also become more competitive as a manufacturing hub in Asia.

 

“It is imperative for every entrepreneur to find a most effective way to adapt their current business models into the realities.  One thing that I have faith in is the ability of the Filipino business community to weather adversities, adjust and move strongly towards the booms thus let us look to the coming year with confidence and a dose of optimism,” Arroyo said.

 

The former President said that the Philippines should also leverage on China’s continuing growth, which according to World Bank, will reach at 5.1 percent this year.

 

Moreover, Arroyo also encouraged the private sector to seize the opportunities of the ongoing global chain diversification by attracting more investors to invest in the country, for instance in the manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles as well as on renewable energy like wind and solar.

 

She said the US and EU have started shifting their production hubs from China to Asian countries in order to produce supply at a lower cost.  

 

Another area to consider, Arroyo stressed is the agriculture sector, where the government can enter into a public-private partnership for investment in hard and soft infrastructure, such as for transport and modernization of urban wholesale markets and rural aggregation centers.

 

Likewise, she added that the electronics industry will remain resilient and needed as the digital economy accelerates. However, the advancement othe f Fourth Industrial Revolution (FIRE) may likely affect the BPO industry with call center agents eventually being replaced by AIs in the next two-five years. --- Grace Carolyn Morella

​

​

​