Here's another speech I made for my boss:
In April and May this year, PHILEXPORT-Cebu and DTI had a series of consultations with key industry representatives of the export sector.
Industries represented during the consultations included GTH, electronics and industrial goods, food ICT services and medical tourism.
These consultations were meant to inform stakeholders of the status of the national and regional economies, as well as new developments in trade and investments, It also identified challenges for 2008-2010 based on gaps in the six pillars of competitiveness, and discussed possible solutions to gaps for consideration in the Regional Export Development Plan.
A Validation Workshop was held on May 7 to validate outputs from previous FGD’s and workshops. Discussions focused on issues related to the 6 drivers of competitiveness which are: human resource, management, infrastructure, logistics, energy and financing.
The group’s proposed Vision Statement is “We are the Primary export hub of Central and Southern Philippines.”
The group recognizes that future export success will rely on the continued mobilization of the private sector to pursue global competitiveness, the strengthening of the institutional structures which support export development and grant incentives, the introduction of innovative financing schemes for the small to medium-scale enterprise sector.
Export success will also rely on the reduction of transaction costs through further rationalization and simplification of export and international business procedures, the acceleration of foreign direct investment and, of course, more effective implementation of specific initiatives.
In coming up with a goal, our approach was to develop one that was in parallel with the country’s overall economic development plan and to ensure that the regional export strategy becomes an essential component of the national plan.
Our proposed goal is “By 2010, Central Visayas will be the center of all export activities for Central and Southern Philippines with a conducive and environment friendly business climate that is founded on ideal infrastructure, highly skilled and innovative human resource, good governance and ample raw material supply.”
Our proposed Export Target:
Year 2007 - $2.5 billion
Year 2008 - $2.8 billion
Year 2009 - $3.1 billion
Year 2010 - $3.5 billion
Regional exports registered $ 2.2 B last year. However, we expect that this will grow by leaps and bounds in the succeeding years..
The group has taken into consideration that high growth areas in the coming years will come from the so-called 10 Revenue Streams, export products identified to have high growth potentials. Some of these revenue streams are areas where Central Visayas excel.
These revenue streams are projected to post double-digit growth rates in the next three years, led by information technology. Other product groups expected to perform well are marine products, organic and natural products, home furnishings, wearables, motor vehicle parts and components, electronics, construction materials, giftware, holiday décor and food.
Here are the results of the GAP analysis on the 6 drivers of competitiveness as can been seen on the slides. Issues and proposed interventions or strategies to address setbacks in the export industry were thoroughly discussed by representatives from the export sector.
As expected, issues focused on human resource, management, infrastructure, logistics, energy and financing. Considering that copies of results of the workshop have already been given to each of you, I feel no need to reiterate what had been discussed.
The group’s comprehensive approach to strategy conceptualization reinforces the essential linkages between export strategy and the country’s other economic and social initiatives.
As importantly, developing export strategy directly in conjunction with national economic planning ensures that export development is reflected as a priority in all economic portfolios and that export development and promotion are seen as a continuing national priority.
Considering that the government gives utmost importance to public-private sector dialogue, it continues to seek a concerted effort to build consensus within the private sector on export development issues and policy advocacy,
In closing, I would like to acknowledge the cooperation and active participation of our export leaders and, of course, PHILEXPORT-Cebu, who had been identified as lead of the consultations, to the success of the discussions..
