PEZA targets to hit 10% growth in investments

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) is setting its sights on hitting a 10 per cent increase in investment pledges in 2023. 

PEZA is looking to receive P155 billion worth of investments this year, 10 per cent higher than the registered P140.7 billion in 2022. 

According to PEZA, the largest investments in 2022, with a combined value of P96.21 billion, came from 29 economic zones in the country. 

PEZA added that 11 of the ecozone projects were registered from July to December, with investments of P90.65 billion and accounting for 94 percent of the total ecozone investments in 2022.

“This solidifies the strategic role of economic zones in the country’s economic progress as mentioned in the first State of the Nation Address of the President. PEZA is preparing more initiatives and synergy with other government agencies to strengthen the country’s economic zones in line with the 2023 to 2028 PDP,” PEZA officer-in-charge Tereso Panga said.

Panga added that with PEZA’s inclusion in the economic development program, more ecozones are likely to be approved and created in the countryside. 

“Ecozones can be shields to soften the landing of the headwinds, the external constraints and all these global disruptions happening especially during this time. The other side to this is that ecozones can be economic drivers to accelerate economic recovery and growth,” he said.

Under the six-year PDP, PEZA is tasked to expedite the implementation of the ecozone transformation roadmap, expanding to different types of special economic zones under PEZA. These include the new frontiers for ecozone development which PEZA has been advocating as a catalyst for growth and development.