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ECONOMY 2010
NO WAY BUT UP
THE COUNTRY’S prominent performers in business and government—majority of whom are on the list of Exemplar Awardees of Bulong Pulungan, a forum composed of influential journalists—are one in saying that this year, the Philippines would bounce back into shape. The economic weather is definitely clearer and survival is no longer in its vocabulary. More appropriate words would be recovery and revival.
“There will be renewed optimism in the business sector in 2010 if we elect a president who is progressive and will be able to encourage investments in the Philippines. Our program for women will continue because it is a lifetime advocacy. We will teach livelihood programs to more women all over the country so they can develop home-based small businesses and micro enterprises. Every year, we award those micro enterprises who have achieved a relative success, with additional capital to encourage them to further improve their businesses.”
- Congresswoman Cynthia Villar
“For the first nine months of last year, tourist traffic posted a 17% increase. This does not include the last quarter of the year which is, historically, the peak season for our country. That puts us in a good position for this new year because a lot of the markets that were down last year are now recovering. I foresee this year will be a better one with about P557 billion worth of new investments. The Department of Tourism and the industry are prepared to take advantage of the upturn.”
- Tourism Secretary Ace Durano
“Big investors have put up new businesses in Manila and we have eliminated red tape. The processing for the application of new permits now only takes 15 minutes. We have reduced the number of signatures to six and we are guaranteeing protection for investors in the conduct of their business. That’s why so many are applying for the opening of new businesses in Manila. We expect this to continue this year. We will also take advantage of the fast development in information technology and complement this with the setting up of new structures for the city’s colleges. Of course, the focus on tourism will always be there.”
- Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim
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