PEZA eyes Indian pharma, BPO investments
MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) is actively seeking investments from leading Indian pharmaceutical and business process outsourcing (BPO) firms as part of its strategic initiative to diversify the country’s economic zones.
Revival of direct flights to boost trade
A significant aspect of this initiative is the revival of direct flights between India and the Philippines, which aims to enhance tourism, trade, and investment flows between the two nations.
This effort is supported by HSBC Philippines, which facilitated an investment mission to India to bolster foreign direct investment (FDI).
Government and business engagements in India
During a weeklong itinerary covering New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Mumbai, PEZA engaged in high-level meetings with India’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and the Department of Commerce and Industry.
These discussions emphasized the importance of signing a bilateral investment agreement and strengthening regional economic cooperation through the ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
“Both joint secretaries have expressed their aspiration for the immediate signing of the bilateral investment agreement between our two countries and the strengthening of regional economic cooperation and market access through the ASEAN-India FTA,” PEZA stated.
Targeting Indian tech and pharma sectors
PEZA’s government-to-business meetings included interactions with prominent Indian companies in the IT-BPO and pharmaceutical sectors, such as HSBC Global Capability Center, SMBC New Delhi Office, and Hyderabad Software Enterprises Association.
In total, PEZA conducted meetings with 27 tech companies and nine pharmaceutical firms.
Expansion discussions were also held with existing IT-related enterprises, such as Concentrix, Wipro, EXL, Coforge, R1 RCM, WNS, and Firstsource Solutions.
Additionally, Indian agro-energy and renewable energy developer SAEL expressed interest in investing in a power generation facility in Bulacan.
Strategic investment leads
The Philippine Ambassador to India and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in New Delhi provided further leads on Indian companies looking to invest in mineral processing, steel manufacturing, infrastructure, and transport development.
According to PEZA, India’s vibrant pharmaceutical and IT sectors make it an attractive target for FDI and tech partnerships.
India ranked fourth globally in artificial intelligence (AI) research and AI patents filed in 2020, highlighting its technological prowess.
Aligning with global supply chain strategy
Global capability centers (GCCs) are another area where India excels, aligning with PEZA’s goal to attract more GCCs to the Philippines. Currently, India hosts 1,600 GCCs compared to the Philippines’ 200.
“This will complement our efforts to attract more investments and trade from India as part of our government’s global supply chain de-risking strategy,” PEZA noted.
The investment mission is timely as the Philippines aims to develop new types of ecozones, including pharmaceutical ecozones, e-tech hubs, and Knowledge, Innovation, Science, and Technology Parks, to promote innovation and niche products and technologies.
By targeting these sectors, PEZA hopes to foster a more diverse and resilient economic landscape, enhancing the country’s attractiveness as a global investment destination.