The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) said it has approved P48.027 billion worth of investments from January to May 2023, which is 153.74 percent higher than the P18.928 billion recorded in the same period in 2022.
In a statement on Monday, the investment promotion agency divulged that it greenlighted 20 new and expansion projects in May 2023 which it said is expected to bring in P14.933 billion investments.
PEZA Director General Tereso O. Panga said “This brings PEZA’s total approved investments for the Jan-May period to P48.027 billion, which is 153.74 percent higher as compared to the P18.928 billion in the same period in 2022.”
As to the breakdown of approvals, among these 20 projects approved by the PEZA Board last May 26, 11 are into export manufacturing, seven into Information Technology (IT), one facility and one ecozone development.
According to PEZA, these projects will be located in Makati, Pasig, Taguig, Baguio, Pampanga, Cavite, Batangas, Laguna, Cebu, Iloilo, and South Cotabato.
Meanwhile, it said the biggest project “pre-qualified” by the PEZA Board for [Fiscal Incentives Review Board] FIRB approval is engaged in the manufacturing of solar wafer cells with Maxeon 7 technology to be located in Sto. Tomas, Batangas, with investments worth P11.633 billion.
These 20 recently approved projects are expected to generate about US$293.55 million exports and create 4,480 direct jobs.
The PEZA chief stressed that the investment promotion agency is seeing an “uptrend with our approvals as we enter the first half of the year, and we are more aggressive in our initiatives to help our investors make the Philippines their smart investment choice.”
The P14.932 billion investments greenlighted in the month of May 2023 alone is a 405.78 percent increase from the P2.95 billion worth of investment approvals last May 2022.
Meanwhile, the P48.027 billion worth of investment approvals from January to May 2023 or in the first five months of the year is expected to generate 11,949 jobs and around US$1.31 billion of exports.
As it aims to adopt a “whole of government” approach, PEZA said it is constantly partnering with government agencies and various industry associations to address pain points that hinder investors to unlock the untapped potentials of the Philippines.
In fact, PEZA said it met with Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno, Commission on Election (COMELEC) Chairman George Garcia, and National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan to discuss the concerns of its investors.
PEZA said it also presented its initiatives in support of the investment attraction and facilitation strategy of the government to bring in the much-needed [foreign direct investments] FDIs to the country.
Meanwhile, the investment promotion agency said it is on track to attain its “conservative” 10 percent growth target for the year.