Signing of RP-Japan eco partnership agreement to be delayed till yearend

The signing of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) may be delayed up to the end of the year due to the need for further fine-tuning of certain provisions.

According to Trade and Industry Officer-in-Charge Thomas G. Aquino, the Philippine panel does not want to rush the agreement for signing by September this year.

"It has to be a good deal. We want to conclude it as soon as possible, but it (the agreement) cannot be born out of tension or we will not be able to live with it, " Aquino explained.

Some of the provisions of the agreement that need further fine-tuning, Aquino cited, include the provisions of Rules of Origin, the automotive sector and the movement of natural persons.

Aquino also dispelled reports that the proposed JPEPA would shutout Filipino investments in their own land as a result of the National Treatment provision that aims to give "special treatment" to Japanese investors.

Aquino said that included in the Chapter on Investment is the Performance Requirement Prohibitions that clarify the Philippine government’s existing regulations for Japanese and other foreign investors.

The Philippine negotiating team is very careful in bargaining with their counterpart to ensure that the agreement that would be signed by both governments abides by Philippines laws and that local business gain from the accord, Aquino said.

Japanese nationals who wish to invest in the country are subject to Constitutional restrictions and limitations of the Philippines’ national laws such that they are prohibited to own land, cannot enter retail trade unless they comply with regulations under Republic Act 8762 or the Retail Trade Liberalization Act. Moreover, Japanese investors are still subject to equity restrictions under the Foreign Investments Negative List (FINL) of the Foreign Investments Act.

Hence, Japanese investors have no equity or limited equity in sectors such as mass media, practice of professions, cooperatives, small-scale mining, utilization of marine resources, and others.

What the National Treatment aims to provide is to give Japanese investors equal treatment or access, in terms of equal protection of the law, as nationals once the Japanese investor is established in the Philippine Territory.

"Japanese investors will be given equal access to the courts of justice and administrative tribunals and agencies in all degrees of jurisdiction," Aquino clarified.

Under the Chapter on Investments, the proposed EPA provides for greater transparency on rules and regulations governing Japanese investments in the Philippines and vice versa.

The JPEPA aims to install a more transparent investment environment by providing more regularity, predictability and certainty in the economic environment.

This mechanism is designed to attract more Japanese investments in key sectors of the economy.

The proposed JPEPA seeks to enhance bilateral economic relations between the Philippines and Japan.

It will definitely increase foreign direct investments and spur economic growth and development for the country by generating employment, enable technology transfer and possibly make the Philippines a base for Japanese companies to export to other ASEAN countries.