Investors’ confidence in RP high, bullish–BOI governor
The Board of Investments, an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry, revealed that the investors’ confidence in the Philippines is high and bullish, and BOI is matching this enthusiasm with tax grants and fiscal incentives to investors.
Lucita Reyes, executive director of the BOI-Project Assessment Group, said that for the period January to July this year, investment approval of BOI and PEZA reached P240 billion compared to the same period last year which is only around P100 billion.
The target of both BOI and PEZA for 2010 is P450-billion and Reyes is confident they can reach the target since BOI as of this time has already P111-billion worth of projects lined up for check listing.
BOI Governor Francisco Ferrer said that the role of BOI is to mobilize savings to direct investments to move the country forward.
“It is the program of government to disperse the industries in the country and not just in Metro Manila,” Ferrer told stakeholders in an orientation in Bacolod City.
Reyes also presented the 10 themes in 2010 of the BOI which cover the different industry sector groupings namely: The Olympian, The Heavy Lifters, Green Entrepreneurs, New Kids on the Block, Homeland Security, Globe Trotters X (Exporters), Social Rate of Return, Responsible Corporation, Bias for the Little Guy and The New BOI.
The Olympian include power industries today which are tourism, business process outsourcing, electronics, and mining. In the Heavy Lifters theme include investments in energy, physical infrastructure, logistics and downstream oil industry.
For Green Entrepreneurs which cover investments in green projects, waste management facilities, industrial forests, and renewable energy. The New Kids on the Block refers to ventures on calamities and disasters industry, creative industry and the knowledge services.
Food security, housing, cement plants, drugs and medicines, water supply and distribution projects are part of the Homeland Security theme, while the last of the six priority themes is the Globe Trotters X which include the production and manufacture of non-traditional exports, traditional exports in the mining and agriculture sectors, export of services to clients (not necessarily rendered abroad as long as paid for in the foreign currency), and activities in support of exporters. These are eligible projects for the incentives.*
