Philippines lags in digital economy growth
MANILA, PHILIPPINES — A recent study reveals that the Philippines lags in digital economy growth, compared to its neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.
According to data gathered by Tech for Good Institute (TFGI), a think tank, the Philippines only credits 9.4% of its gross domestic product (GDP) to the online economy.
Whereas Vietnam’s digital market accounts for 14.26 percent of its GDP; Malaysia, 14 percent; Singapore, 13 percent; and Thailand, 13 percent.
The Philippines was slightly ahead of Indonesia, with 9% digital market.
TFGI suggests that the Philippines must undertake significant reforms to bolster its digital economy, including expediting the rollout of national IDs and fostering collaboration between the government and digital economy companies.
“Beyond that, the government should consider collaborating with digital economy companies to drive further innovation of trust-enabling technologies that can meet the needs of the ecosystem like digital signatures for e-commerce transactions and verification tools for digital documents,” TFGI said.
Despite its current position, TFGI believes that the Philippines remains a promising market for digitalization in the region.
In 2021, the country recorded $17 billion in gross merchandise value from e-commerce transactions, with projections indicating a potential $40 billion market by 2025.
TFGI, founded by Grab, is a think tank dedicated to Southeast Asia’s tech landscape.
