The Philippines is urging members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Ports Association (APA) to align their policies and port infrastructure improvements so as to take advantage of China’s Maritime Silk Road (MSR).
Speaking before delegates of the 42nd APA Main Meeting on November 15, Philippine Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the MSR offers immense growth opportunities as it allows APA members to expand their trading base outside of traditional markets like the U.S., Japan, China, Australia, and India.
The MSR is principally a sea route from the South China Sea and Southeast Asia through to the Indian Ocean and the Middle East area and into the eastern Mediterranean, while also extending in other directions. Its main feature is a slew of port infrastructure projects, some linked to parts of land-based projects.
“I am convinced that opportunities are there for making strategic port infrastructure investment which can connect major Philippine gateways and other APA ports to huge markets along the Maritime Silk Road Corridor,” Tugade said.
“The Philippine Government had already expressed its intention to tap the China Maritime Silk Road Initiative (CMSRI) during the visit of President Duterte to China and Japan recently,” the Cabinet official added.
“The Philippines, in particular, is looking forward to [tapping] the huge China tourism market from a stronger relationship with China now. However, it needs to catch up with its neighbors, which enjoy huge cruise tourist arrivals as they continuously prep up their ports for cruise tourism,” Tugade said.
Aside from the MSR, Tugade also stressed the significance of maritime cooperation with Japan that is anchored on safety and security, considering the APA community also has a strategic program on port safety, health, and environmental management, as well as initiatives to promote green and sustainable ports through best practices.
Meanwhile, Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) general manager Jay Daniel Santiago, in his welcome remarks during the same event, said the agency is looking to establish closer ties with members of APA and furthering collaborative efforts on APA priority concerns as foundations for future policy formulation and program planning.
“APA will always take a dynamic and active role in our collective pursuit to attain efficiency and productivity in our ports while gearing up for more challenges that will strengthen the association’s clout in the ASEAN community by way of more focused and groundbreaking port and maritime initiatives and projects,” Santiago explained.
“We, in PPA, remain confident that the future of the APA will always remain brightly intertwined with the unified efforts of its member nations,” Santiago added.
APA Secretary General Sandhy Wijaya, on the other hand, identified two key challenges facing the ASEAN port industry. These are the stronger bargaining power of shipping alliances and the increasing number of “green vessels” that obligates ports to provide green services and environmentally friendly innovations.
“The strong bargaining power of shipping alliances forces the ports to restructure their cost and redesign their business process in order to increased efficiency to provide the lowest possible tariff,” Wijaya explained.
“ASEAN ports have to find the way to cope with the challenges through more investment in port infrastructure, information technology and people quality. These challenges will create winners and losers in the terminal business,” Wijaya said.
“Taking this opportunity, I would like to encourage all APA members to strengthen our cooperation in order to cope with the challenges,” Wijaya ended.
The nine member countries of APA are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
APA was formed in 1974 as an alliance of port authorities in the ASEAN that serve as a forum for the exchange of information, harmonization of trade practices, and promotion and facilitation of trade among ASEAN ports.
