Over P7Bn investments amid PH-UAE agreement
Over P7 billion (US$131 million) worth of investment is expected to be generated with the signing of the investment promotion and protection agreement (IPPA) between the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In a statement released by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), this partnership is said to open up 2,500 jobs within the country.
Sectors of interest in the UAE business community include import and distribution, scaffolding and formwork manufacturing, engineering services, defense, telecommunications, tourism, poultry, aerospace, retail (medical equipment or devices), and renewable energy.
The IPPA covers a wide range of areas such as protection of investments, national treatment, most favored nation treatment, transfers, expropriation and compensation, and procedures for investor-state dispute settlement.
A Joint Committee on Investment will be developed as part of the IPPA to start investment initiatives and look at areas of cooperation in both countries. It will be headed by the undersecretaries of the Philippines’ DTI and UAE’s Ministry of Finance.
DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez said that this partnership is an “important step in further strengthening the countries’ economic ties, as the countries have also launched the start of the official negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).”
