The Philippines has vast potentials to be the heart of services trade in
Asia Pacific.
A
study authored by Dr. Ramonette Serafica, research consultant of state think
tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), underscores the vast
opportunities left untapped in the services sector.
The
services sector has significantly contributed to the Philippine economy in
increasing employment, investment, and revenue generation. It represents 44.15
percent in gross exports in terms of service value added, Serafica said.
“However, there are still vast opportunities left untapped to fully exploit its
role in the economy.”
The
country’s strong information technology-business process outsourcing industry
places the country in a comparative advantage as a net exporter of services,
Serafica said.
“The
main source of the country’s comparative advantage is its pool of skilled,
semiskilled, and low-skilled workers,” Serafica said. Moreover, technological
changes in information and communication technology and the business models of
multinational companies that are leaned toward outsourcing and offshoring of
services have leveraged the country’s human capital.
Serafica
added that the Philippines has a strong potential to become a major hub in ship
repair because of its strong labor force. Other plus factors are its
geographical location which is ideal as a logistics hub for cargo and its deep
seashores that make the country suitable as a ship repair hub.
The
growing numbers of overseas Filipinos across the globe, more than 10 million to
date, are a natural market for Philippine services, Serafica added.
Despite
the country’s decades of experience as a supplier of labor, there should be a
comprehensive services export initiative to help facilitate the overseas
expansion of other services, Serafica said. There should be “an umbrella
program dedicated to services exports that would help create the Philippines as
a valuable brand in services trade.”
Serafica
noted that based on the World Bank’s services trade restrictiveness index
(STRI), the Philippines has “one of the most restrictive policy environments
for services.” STRI is a gauge of a country’s degree of discriminatory
restrictions in financial services, telecommunications, retail, transport, and
professional services. “Among the sectors included in the index, it is in
professional services where the extent of restrictiveness [of the Philippines] is
highest,” Serafica said. In addition to restrictive policies, anticompetitive business
practices also exist, she noted.
Serafica
suggested that a government policy on innovation and human resource development
(HRD) be implemented to further create an environment conducive to improving
competitiveness. She cited a World Bank report where many countries both
developed and developing are using innovation as the foundation of competitive
industries from agriculture to services. This innovation involves the use
of new technologies and practices as well as HRD policies that will ensure a
high-quality labor force and a favorable labor market performance.
For
more information, you may download the full study athttp://dirp3.pids.gov.ph/webportal/CDN/PUBLICATIONS/pidspn1407.pdf.
(PIDS)
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