Marcos Jr. entices Cambodia Inc. to take part in PH growth

PHNOM PENH—President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has urged Cambodian business leaders to invest in the Philippines, citing the economy’s potential and 7.6-percent growth in the third quarter of 2022 during his trip to attend meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

On the first day of his first visit to Cambodia, the President met with business leaders here to assure them of the positive prospects for the Philippine economy as shown by the economy’s 7.6-percent growth in the third quarter of 2022, which is higher than the 7.5-percent gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of the year.

“You can feel that our economy is trying to grow but is really being pummeled by the forces outside of which we have no control,” Mr. Marcos said, citing factors, such as the high inflation rate and the pandemic.

“I still believe that the opportunities for investment in the Philippines are much improved from what they were before. It has always been my belief that as we come out of the pandemic economy, the government cannot do the recovery alone, it needs partners in the private sector,” he said.

“We would like to invite you, at the very least, to have a look at the opportunities that are available. I suppose at some point, since we are not so far away, to come and we will explain exactly to you what we have done, why we have done it and where we have arrived in that process of transforming the economy,” the Chief Executive said.

His goal is to have “a balanced economy on the contributors to the GDP between the manufacturing side and the service side” even as he discussed plans to develop the micro, small and medium enterprises sector, “especially now that they are very much in need.”

Cambodian big business

The President made the remarks in a roundtable meeting with business leaders on Thursday morning at the Hyatt Phnom Penh.

Mr. Marcos addressed Cambodian business leaders, including Sear Rithy and Allen Dodgson Tan of the WorldBridge Group; Mong Reththy of the Mong Reththy Group; Hun Lak, Vanmunin Chhieng of the Khmer Enterprise; Van Sou Ieng of the ACLEDA Bank; Pierre Balsan of Bluebell Cambodia and Henry Leang of Chip Mong Land.

During the meeting, the President said his administration is developing the domestic market for its potential to attract both foreign and local investors.

“We are encouraging not only foreign investment. We are also encouraging local investment because we feel there is potential in the market. A hundred and seven million people is a big market and we have to develop that market. We have not developed our own markets. I think that is another potential that we can exploit down the road,” Mr. Marcos said.

“Once we can digitalize and digitize our operations, the bureaucracy, the national government and the local government, then things will be much, much easier. Because any investment really has to be approved at the local government level,” the President said. INQ

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