The 12th of June marks a joyous and momentous event for Filipinos all over the world. The Filipinos on this date in 1898 declared its independence from the nearly 400 years of Spanish colonization, not without numerous and heart wrenching sacrifices and lives lost of brilliant and brave young Filipino men and women.
The Filipinos commemorate it with joy for the heroism of their forefather was not lost and yet, Filipinos also commemorate it with great respect for the legacy of selfless sacrifice that has brought the Philippines in equal place among other free countries.
This year the Government of the Philippines enjoins the Filipinos all over the world to mark this year’s Philippine Independence Day with the theme “Following the Footsteps of the great Filipinos toward permanent and widespread change.”
The Government of the Philippines would like to remind all Filipinos all over the world to continue to show their patriotism to their country and continue to share their caring, talented and industrious nature with the rest of the world until the vision of our heroic fathers is achieved —- a Philippines where all Filipinos enjoy free access to social services, especially health and education; freedom from want; and a life of justice and equality.
THE PHLIPPINES TODAY
The Philippines today enjoy a rich pool of talent, robust infrastructure, strategic business location, cosmopolitan lifestyle and offer attractive investment incentives.
The Philippines produce over 470,000 college graduates per year across a wide range of disciplines. They are highly-educated, English proficient, customer service oriented, highly trainable with fast learning curve and adaptable to various cultures, and possess a high level of commitment and loyalty. Each year, more than 110, 000 graduate from business courses, 73,000 from medical courses and 100,000 from IT/Computer sciences/Engineering. It is reported to have the highest number of MBA graduates in the world with 130 Masters in Business Administration schools, including the eminent Asian Institute of Management (AIM). It is a plus, that the Filipinos are known all over as the warmest and most hospitable people in the region (ranking as the 8th friendliest in the world), possessing a decidedly global outlook. That is why the Filipino overseas worker is among the most sought after in the world, remitting for the Philippines USD 21.39 Billion in 2012, through banks and financial institutions.
Infrastructure ready to receive the world traveler and business are in place in the major areas of the Philippines: nine international airports and 20 domestic airports; three connecting railways which spans across the whole Metro Manila; 12 roll-on and roll-off ports; a 94-kilometer four lane Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway; an 84 kilometer North Luzon Expressway; a 42-kilometer STAR Tollway and Cavite Expressway.
The Philippines has modern telecommunication system and one of the highest cellular phone ownership in the world. It has become known as the text capital of the world.
The Philippines is central to the 500 million ASEAN Market and has its own market of a population that ranks the 12th in the world. It is also a natural gateway to the East Asian economies with the Philippines’ location at the crossroad of international shipping and airlines. The Philippines is reachable anywhere in Asia within a short span around four hours.
INVESTMENT IN THE PHILIPPINES
The Philippine Government is committed to creating investor-friendly conditions with liberalized policies and regulations and special economic zones and free ports in various parts of the country that have infrastructure support and fiscal and non-fiscal incentives (depending on whether the availment is a BOI incentive, PEZA incentive or CDC/SBMA incentive) such as:
· income tax holidays
· ITH Bonus
· special tax rate of 5% on gross income
· tax and duty free importation of capital equipment, spare parts and supplies
· exemption from wharfage dues and export tax, duty, impost and fee
· simplification of customs procedures
· employment of foreign nationals
One hundred percent foreign equity is allowed provided that the investments have a paid-up capital of USD200,000 and are not in the area of finance and those listed in the Foreign Investment Negative List (i.e. mass media, security and defense, small scale mining, etc.).
Philippine major exports are outsourced business services, semi-conductors and electronics, transport equipment, copper products, machineries and parts, garments, processed food, fruits, coconut oil, petroleum products and textile yarns. It is a member of the APEC, ASEAN and WTO.
Foreign investors who set up business in the Philippines enjoy the value for money housing, modern recreational facilities, first rate hospitals, educational institutions that adopt international standards and varied business center and tourist areas to choose from.
Top sectors for investments are manufacturing; electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning; real estate; transportation and storage; and accommodation and food service.
For those interested in the stock market, the Philippines posted the 2nd best in Asia in 2013 at +33%. It has also posted a 7.8% GDP growth rate in 2013 and a headline inflation of 3%.
The Philippines also continue to show resilient, strong and diversified exports earning for the country with USD 51.99 Billion in merchandise exports and USD 11.9 Billion in service exports anchored on a BPO sector with a direct employment of 640,000. Due to these, the Philippines gained an 11.3% growth in Gross International Reserves at USD 83.8 Billion in 2012. The national government deficit now stands at only 1.4% of GDP, better than the IMF standard of 2%.
