New NEDA chief eyes PPP revival

MANILA, Philippines — Incoming socioeconomic planning secretary Arsenio Balisacan is looking to revitalize public-private partnerships (PPPs) and revive the manufacturing sector to achieve economic growth under the new administration.

The incoming director general of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said PPPs are among the priorities discussed by president-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. with him especially for the near term.

“Partly to address the fiscal bind, we should reinvigorate, reexamine, bring back public-private partnerships, PPP,” Balisacan said in an interview with ANC yesterday.

Balisacan, who is currently the chairman of the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC), said that there is a need to reach out to the private sector.

“He (Marcos) believes the private sector plays a strong role in economic development, which is also my firm view. Without the private sector, you can’t really expect to go far,” Balisacan said.

A primary consideration for PPPs would be the economic viability and sustainability of the project, he added.

In addition to PPPs, Balisacan explained that there is a need to revive the manufacturing sector.

“The lesson of recent history is that if you have a robust manufacturing sector in the early stages of your development, poverty reduction is so fast and likely sustainable,” Balisacan said.

According to Balisacan, several studies have pointed out that constraints holding back the country’s manufacturing sector include the ease of doing business.

“If you look at international comparisons of countries, you see that the ease of doing business in this country is terrible. It has improved quite substantially, but it is a slow improvement. We need to do so much more,” Balisacan added.

Other impediments to the growth of the manufacturing sector are the high cost of inputs and power, as well as the state of telecommunications and internet services.

“We have to look at the issues and encourage investment there,” Balisacan said.

The country, Balisacan said, needs to vigorously enforce the competition policy to ensure that sectors in the economy like manufacturing do not have barriers to entry that prevent potential investors from coming in.

Moreover, Balisacan said that the government needs to address the education crisis now as it would become a hindrance to the country’s productivity growth in the future.

“Ten years from now, when these kids join the labor market, they will not be as competitive as those in our neighbors like in Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam where they are investing heavily in good education or human capital. We still have time to do that, but the past two years I think were very costly as far as human capital is concerned,” Balisacan said.

When it comes to proposed tax reforms, the incoming NEDA chief said these should not come at the expense of those who are vulnerable and have more need in life.