Senator Christopher “Bong” Go’s “Balik Probinsiya” program, which was implemented at a time when the Greater Manila Area’s rate of Covid-19 infection was on an upsurge initially got the ire of some local government officials, especially after a number of those sent home were found to be asymptomatic carriers of the coronavirus. But it’s definitely not the fault of the senator. It must have been caused by some over eager officials tasked to implement the program.
The large number of people that showed up to avail themselves of the program after losing their jobs and income stream in the big city when factories and businesses closed their operations due to the community lockdowns clearly explains that jobs are what attract people to urban centers in the country. And because the country’s center of trade is in Manila, congestion in terms of traffic and human population remain to be the National Capital Region’s major problem.
However, things are changing in the country’s business landscape, triggered by natural market forces. For instance, most coconut oil millers and refiners used to be based in the Metro Manila Area, like Baguio Oil, Procter and Gamble, and the Philippine Refining Company, among others. But when copra dealers in the provinces started milling and refining their own local copra produce, the urban-based coconut oil millers and refiners had to relocate their plants to the provinces, close to their primary source of raw materials, to be competitive.
This make’s Senator Go’s “Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa” (BP2) Program, which is seen as a long-term, holistic program that could address perennial problems in urban and rural areas as a very sensible solution to congestion-related problems in the country’s urban centers and key cities.
With its noble aim to promote a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources among all sectors of society and a balanced economic development in all parts of the country, Senator Go’s BP2 program could help boost the nation’s economic growth in the regions. At the same time, it will help mitigate the economic cost of traffic in the metropolis, which is expected to reach P5.4 billion a day by 2035, according to a study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Previous administrations also had programs similar to Senator Go’s “Balik probinsiya.” But they all failed to decongest urban centers like Metro Manila and other key cities because people who availed themselves of the program kept coming back to the big city to find work. Quoting Senator Panfilo Lacson: “Urban decongestion is only possible if government can create livelihood opportunities in rural areas.”
Thus, Senator Go’s BP2 program should be implemented hand-in-hand with industry dispersal and the decentralization of imperial Manila. For instance, the government can provide incentives to manufacturers who are willing to relocate their operations to the regions. With tax holidays and a one-stop shop that provides ease of doing business incentives, among others, to entice manufacturers to transfer their operations to the regions, this could be a win-win solution for industry stakeholders.
They can sell their properties in the urban areas for a significant profit, and reinvest their earnings from the sale to acquire a similar or bigger area in the regions at a much lower cost. Moreover, they can cut the handling costs of their raw materials by putting up their factories close to the source. And most importantly, they will bring jobs to the rural areas and eventually perk up economic activity in the countryside.
All these policy-driven shifts in the country’s manufacturing industry landscape, coupled with the natural forces to set the premise for a broad-based industry sector that would benefit both urban and rural communities amid the pandemic make Senator Go’s BP2 program the probable answer to the country’s fight against poverty. And for the BP2 to succeed, it must have the support of all sectors of society.
Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza is the chairman of the Federation of Philippine Industries and Fight Illicit Trade; a broad-based, multisectoral movement intended to protect consumers, safeguard government revenues and shield legitimate industries from the ill effects of smuggling.