There’s a lot ahead of Rodrigo Duterte once he assumes the presidency on June 30 – a lot more than the plans on restoring peace and order he often mentioned during the campaign. For one, he inherits an economy that’s growing, but still needs a sustained push so we can truly take break apart from the rest. There is a lot to be done, especially in improving our supply chain capabilities and capacities.
In the latest issue of SCMAP’s official magazine, Supply Chain Philippines, we gathered the thoughts of those in the supply chain industry – as well as from our executive director, Norman Adriano, and yours truly – on what the next president should do in this front. Here are some excerpts:
Nestor Felicio, United Laboratories: “I hope the next president would not slow down or stop the ongoing infrastructure projects, particularly those related to logistics and transportation. We have a lot to catch up on the backlog. I also would like to suggest that beyond ongoing projects, we also address all the bottlenecks in the country’s logistics infrastructure. It should be a holistic approach. For instance … upgrading ports would be useless if roads leading to and out of the ports could not handle the flow and become bottlenecks themselves.”
Christine Pardiñas, Rustan Supercenters Inc.: “One of the major issues that our next President should look into should be the ease of doing business in the country. This covers simplification of processes and elimination of corruption in our government offices, stabilizing the utilities supply, and most importantly, prioritizing the completion of planned road and transportation networks in and out of Metro Manila.”
Anghelita Santor, Nestlé Philippines: “One of the key challenges that any supply chain company in the Philippines faces… is our roads and port infrastructure. Catering to the whole archipelago is quite a challenge – but how we can serve our consumers better? Making products and services available on time when needed is the goal of each industry. Thus, we wish that the president appoint supply chain practitioners… in any related logistics department under government jurisdiction.”
Norman Adriano, SCMAP: “We are strongly recommending the creation of a Commission on Logistics and Supply Chain Management (CLSCM). This commission will ensure that the National Logistics Master Plan is implemented, and that both the private sector and government agencies are involved. It should be headed by a capable and experienced supply chain management practitioner.”
Henrik Batallones, SCMAP: “I hope that aspects of urban planning be also considered in the formulation of policies and regulations affecting supply chain – and vice versa. From designing transportation networks, to zoning regulations, to ensuring proper risk response, supply chain plays a huge, if not immediately explicit, role in these things.”
President Duterte, consider this a part of our wish list, from us here in the supply chain industry. We are willing to help.
This week in SCMAP: Registration for this year’s Supply Chain Immersion has closed – so if you’re joining us from this Wednesday, we thank you for giving us the opportunity to be part of your supply chain journey, and we hope you the event is worth your while.
You can, however, still sign up for our first ever Mindanao Supply Chain Conference, to be held on Friday, May 20, at the Limketkai Luxe Hotel in Cagayan de Oro. Our speakers include DPWH’s Dr. Evelyn Barroso, Vjandep Pastel’s Viel P. Jose MD, Unilab’s Nestor Felicio and COMPETE’s Dr. Henry Basilio. You can still sign up by emailing secretariat@scmap.org. We hope to see you in Cagayan de Oro this week.
Henrik Batallones is the marketing and communications executive of SCMAP. A former board director, he is also editor-in-chief of the organization’s official publication, Supply Chain Philippines.
