Repost: Joseph del Mar Yap, Ambassador of the Philippines to Singapore, talks about the many areas in which there is robust and expanding government-to-government cooperation between the two countries.
Originally posted on: Business TimesÂ
Written by: Narendra Aggarwal
Published on: 11 June 2021
Repost: THE Philippines and Singapore enjoy excellent bilateral ties in almost every field including politics, business, research and innovation, education, and culture, says the Ambassador of the Philippines to Singapore, Joseph del Mar Yap in an interview with The Business Times (BT) on the occasion of his country's Independence Day on Saturday.
"Government-to-government cooperation across many areas continues to grow from strength to strength, be it in the political and economic fields, civil service, education, defence, science and technology, and labour migration management. The Philippines and Singapore celebrated their 50 years of diplomatic relations in 2019, which was capped by a state visit of President Halimah Yacob to the Philippines," says Ambassador Yap.
"Our economies are complementary in many ways, creating vast opportunities for more investments and technical cooperation in such areas as e-commerce, digital technology, food safety and security, water and wastewater management, just to name a few."Mr Yap says that due to the debilitating impact of the pandemic, he sees a lot of interest in forging closer collaboration in dealing with public health crises particularly in such critical areas as detection of emerging infectious diseases, testing and vaccine development. The leaders of both countries are both strong proponents of "vaccine multilateralism", and "vaccine equity", to ensure equitable access to vaccine supplies by all countries, especially the poor countries of the world.The pandemic has accelerated the shift to digital technology, an area in which Singapore is a recognised leader in the region. "I see a lot of potential for practical cooperation in the field of e-commerce, new modes of digital interaction and exchange, and even digital government transformation," Mr Yap tells BT.One other very promising area of development is in cooperation on smart cities. Several Singapore companies such as Surbana Jurong and ST Engineering are already very much involved in the development of new urban centres in the Philippines such as the New Clark City.
TOP PRIORITY
Turning to his priorities as the Ambassador of the Philippines, Mr Yap notes that since he assumed the position, his focus has been the promotion of bilateral trade and investments. "To this end we have organised several business and investment seminars and conferences with various Singapore business groups such as SBF (Singapore Business Federation), SMF (Singapore Manufacturing Federation), SCCCI (Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry), etc.
"In fact, in March this year, we conducted our Second Philippines-Singapore Business and Investment Summit. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, it was a virtual event. But it was a very successful event with more than 300 attendees. We also organised several business delegations to visit the Philippines to learn first-hand the business opportunities available. In fact, in 2019 I personally accompanied a delegation from SCCCI when they visited the Philippines."
The embassy aims to try to invite more Singapore companies to consider the Philippines as a prime location for manufacturing, business process management, and research and development. The Philippines has a lot to offer particularly for those engaged in fintech and e-commerce, medical and healthcare services and even education."One of our new initiatives on the business side is the organisation of a Philippine Chamber of Commerce in Singapore. As more companies decide to set up operations in Singapore, there is now a need for a chamber of commerce to promote their common interests," says Mr Yap.
Apart from this, he would like to make Singapore businesses and businessmen more aware of the major reforms and legislation passed recently to make the Philippines a more attractive investment destination.
The recently enacted Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act aims to provide tax relief for both domestic and international companies especially those engaged in industries negatively affected by Covid-19. Among the major provisions is the reduction in corporate tax rate from 30 per cent to 25 per cent immediately and eventually to 20 per cent by 2027.
In addition, the Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) 2020 spells out qualified activities that are entitled to incentives, some of which are activities related to the fight against or response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This includes the manufacturing of pandemic-related medicines, medical products and equipment, and provision of services in hospitals, as well as quarantine facilities.
"Another initiative that we want to push is for more Philippine companies to sell their products in Singapore, particularly fruits, vegetables and other foods. We are working closely with the producers to ensure that their products will be able to meet the stringent quality and health standards of Singapore," says Mr Yap.
In 2020, Singapore ranked as the Philippines' sixth major trading partner: the fifth export market and the sixth import supplier. In the same year, exports to Singapore amounted to US$3.76 billion. Over the past three years, total exports have averaged US$4.14 billion annually. Despite the pandemic, the value of Philippine exports to Singapore in 2020 reflected only a slight 1.92 per cent decrease from the US$3.83 billion registered in 2019.
The top commodity exports of the Philippines to Singapore are electronic and electrical parts and devices, with a nearly 80 per cent share of total exports to Singapore. These are mainly semiconductors which the Philippines supplies as part of the global supply chain. Other top exports of the Philippines to Singapore are machinery, mineral fuels and distillation products.
Mr Yap says that in 2019, total imports from Singapore were US$6.66 billion, up by 8 per cent from US$6.17 billion in 2018, reflecting a continued positive trend from the previous years. However, due to the pandemic in 2020, Philippine imports from Singapore saw a 19.08 per cent decline to US$5.39 billion.
"We would like to see a more diversified product mix in import and export in bilateral trade. The Philippines would like to be a more significant supplier of fruits, vegetables, pork, chicken and eggs to Singapore in the future," he adds.The ambassador says that the bilateral relations between the Philippines and Singapore remain resilient amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
TRADE INITIATIVES
"While official visits cannot be carried out at this time, the Embassy of the Philippines - through the Commercial Counsellor and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) - continues to assist businessmen and attract investors through online technology platforms. The Philippine Department of Trade and Industry also launched several trade initiatives such as the 'Make it Happen in the Philippines' campaign and held virtual trade fairs.
"On the people-to-people side of our relations, Temasek Foundation has been very generous in donating millions of dollars worth of test kits, testing machines and a whole array of high-valued medical equipment for fighting Covid-19 such as ventilators, oxygen concentrators, high flow nasal cannulas, BiPAP machines - a breathing device that can help a person to breathe more easily - and dialysis machines, as well as PPEs (personal protective equipments) and masks, to assist the Philippines in its fight against the pandemic. For this, the government and the people of the Philippines are truly grateful."Looking ahead, Mr Yap says that his country will continue to invite and encourage Singapore firms to do business and invest in the Philippines. "We will also strive to reopen the tourism industry in the Philippines to welcome Singaporeans to our beautiful beaches, resorts and diving spots, once travel restrictions can be relaxed."He adds: "A new president will be taking office in July 2022. But no matter who wins, I have no doubt that Philippine-Singapore bilateral relations will continue to be strong and will continue to grow and expand."