NEDA: PPP can maximize demographic dividend with more higher-quality jobs

Getting the private sector to invest further in the Philippines can help the country maximize the “demographic dividend” it now enjoys, Socioeconomic Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said on Friday.

“The country is entering what we call the demographic dividend, in recent years, the working age population is growing faster than the total population. What needs to be done to take advantage of that demographic bonus is to ensure that investment comes in, and [it] expands,” Balisacan said.

The country’s working-age group now makes up 63.9 percent of the population, from 59.1 percent in 2000, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority said.

Balisacan said continued and strengthened partnerships with the private sector will also harness their “expertise, resources, and capacity” to upgrade the country’s infrastructure.

After getting President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s go signal, NEDA is set to review the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) Law to revisit provisions in its implementing rules and regulations (IRR).

Baslican previously said they will balance between encouraging private investment to promote job creation, technological innovation, and product competition while protecting the public interest when doing the review.

“Even as existing projects are already underway, the Marcos administration aims to continue the infrastructure push to boost the competitiveness of domestic investments and encourage more significant investment in critical sectors,” he said.

NEDA sees that apart from the infrastructure sector, PPPs will also upgrade the energy, logistics, transportation, telecommunication and water sectors

More investments means more higher-quality job creation for more Filipinos, Balisacan added.

“We see the growth in manufacturing, tourism, IT-BPOs and the creative sectors as contributing to higher-quality job creation that can provide Filipinos with employment that can help in rapid poverty alleviation,” he said.

Balisacan attended the second face-to-face economic briefing of the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) at Shangri-La The Fort with Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Felipe Medalla.

Balisacan and Medalla were inducted as the newest members of MAP along with 9 others.

Among the other new members of MAP were President of Light Rail Manila Corp. Juan “Ping” Alfonso, British Ambassador to the Philippines Laure Beaufils, and Google Philippines Country Director Bernadette Nacario.

Robert Lester Aranton ofWarehouse Management and TRade Development Servies and Macroasia Corp. President Eduardo Luis Tan Uy were also inducted, along with PHINMA Education Holdings Inc. Chief Strategy Officer Theresa Ann Menardo.

Joining them were Shangri-La The Fort’s General Manager Amit Kumar Oberoi, Victory Liner Inc. Business development Head Yasmin Anne Cruz Santos, and Vivant Energy Corp. President Arlo Sarmiento.

“We have a window for sustained growth, we should really work together to ensure that we won’t lose that opportunity,” Balisacan said.