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19 approved new and expansion projects are expected to bring in P6.39 billion worth of investments in January 2023, up 83.69% from P3.48 billion recorded in the same period last year
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18 of the projects are new and expansion projects by registered locator companies while one is an ecozone development project
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For 2023, PEZA is targeting a 10% increase in investments from the P140.7 billion it recorded for January to December 2022
The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has approved 19 new and expansion projects expected to bring in P6.393 billion worth of investments in January 2023, an 83.69% increase from the P3.48 billion recorded in the same period last year.
The projects were approved by the PEZA Board in its first meeting on January 26, PEZA said in a statement.
Of the total, 18 are new and expansion projects by registered locator companies that are expected to bring in a total of P2.28 billion of investments. These include 11 projects for export manufacturing, four for facilities enterprise, two for IT enterprise, and one for domestic market enterprise.
One ecozone development project, meanwhile, was approved and should bring P4.12 billion worth of investments.
These projects will be located in Makati City, Pasay City, Calabarzon, Cebu City, and South Cotabato.
“With the positive start of the year, we are bullish in our outlook this year, targeting a 10% investment growth based on the initial locator sector targets,” said PEZA officer-in-charge and deputy director general for policy and planning Tereso Panga.
For 2023, PEZA is targeting a 10% increase in investments from the P140.7 billion it recorded from January to December 2022, which increased 103.03% from investments in the same period in 2021.
In relation to this, PEZA vowed to strengthen the implementation of its economic zone development program with the recent launch of the new Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028. The PDP is the country’s blueprint for socioeconomic development over the medium term that was crafted at the beginning of each new administration.
One of the strategies under the new PDP is for PEZA to expedite the implementation of the ecozone transformation roadmap, which expands the different types of special ecozones registrable under PEZA to include new models incorporating townships, such as the agro-forestry ecozone; aquamarine park; defense industrial complex; halal hub; island city ecozone; and the knowledge, innovation, science and technology park, among others.
On the legislation side, one of PDP’s priority bills seeks to amend the PEZA law, which entails updating of the 27-year-old measure to adopt to the digitalization of the locators.
“With the inclusion of the ecozone development program in the new Philippine Development Plan, we are positive that more ecozones will be approved and created especially in the countryside,” Panga said.
“Ecozones can be shields to soften the landing of the headwinds, the external constraints, and all these global disruptions happening especially during this time. The other side to this is that ecozones can be economic drivers to accelerate economic recovery and growth,” he explained.
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