PEZA Director General Charito Plaza
MANILA – The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has reported that investment approvals from January to July 2020 reached PHP52.01 billion.
This came from 164 new and expansion projects registered with the investment promotion agency.
In a statement Monday, PEZA said approved investments in the first seven months of the year are 27 percent lower than registered projects in the same period in 2019 amounting to PHP71.21 billion.
“Nevertheless, we at PEZA remain hopeful to bounce back from this. We have to treat this crisis as both a lesson and an opportunity,” PEZA Director General Charito Plaza said.
A big chunk of investment approvals in the first seven months of the year came from the manufacturing sector with investments amounting to PHP23.34 billion, 24 percent higher from January to July 2019 figure of PHP18.77 billion.
Registered projects from information technology-business process management (IT-BPM) also jumped by 37 percent to PHP11.40 billion in the first seven months of the year from PHP8.32 billion in the same period last year.
On the other hand, investments from foreign sources improved by 26 percent to PHP36.26 billion from January to July this year from PHP28.75 billion in the same period in 2019.
“Even with the difficulties brought about by the Covid-19 (coronavirus disease) pandemic, PEZA continues to attract investors to the country and promote the creation of special economic zones especially in the countryside that will become economic drivers in every region,” Plaza said.
However, investments from local firms plunged by 63 percent to PHP15.75 billion in the first seven months of 2020 from PHP42.26 billion during the same period last year.
“Covid-19 cannot stop PEZA in performing its mandate to register, manage, and operate public and private economic zones in the country. PEZA continues to attract investors to come and invest in the Philippines despite the crisis,” the PEZA chief added.
Meanwhile, PEZA reported that export revenue created by its locators from January to June 2020 declined by 7 percent to USD24.81 billion, while job creation also slowed down by 3 percent with total employment generated in ecozones nationwide at 1.48 million in the first half of the year. (PNA)
