Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo emphasized that the recently approved Strategic Investment Priority Plan (SIPP) will sustain the momentum towards economic recovery, saying SIPP will create and recover jobs for Filipinos.
“We are truly making it happen in the Philippines, as the SIPP aims to hasten the transformation of the country’s economy into a modern and efficient one with highly-developed infrastructure,” said Rodolfo.
Further, the trade undersecretary noted that the investment plan plays an enormous role in the country’s goal of bouncing back from the economic challenges brought about by the pandemic.
The Philippine Board of Investments (BOI), for its part stressed that with SIPP’s approval, the board is set to promote the notable features of SIPP in key regions and cities in the country and target foreign markets as well.
In addition, the BOI said that it aims to inform industry players, concerned stakeholders, and prospective and existing foreign investors on the business opportunities waiting in line for them.
Further, the investments board noted that it would guide these businesses on how they can further grow their businesses by availing of the investment incentives under the SIPP such as income tax holidays and duty-free importation of capital equipment.
Meanwhile, Trade Secretary and BOI Chairman Ramon Lopez pointed out that the SIPP serves as an engine toward the national industrial revolution to beef up industries and yield more diversified, complex, and sophisticated products and services in the Philippines.
“The approval by the President of the SIPP is opportune, as the country is heading towards economic recovery. This will catalyze industrial development,” said Lopez.
Particularly, the SIPP adopts the 2020 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) as Tier I as the base structure for Philippine Development; it determines products or services which are not locally produced, for consideration for Tier II; and identifies high technology activities critical to the transformation of the economy and attracting technology investments for Tier III.
The SIPP’s Tier I contains the preferred activities under the 2020 IPP, which include all qualified activities relating to the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Tier II has activities that will fill in the gaps in the Philippine industrial value chains, which are critical in promoting green ecosystems, ensuring a dependable health system, achieving robust self-reliance in defense systems, and transforming into modern, competitive, and integrated and self-reliant industries and agriculture by filling in value chain gaps and encouraging industries for import substitution and competitively ensure food security.
For Tier III, the activities are meant to expedite the transformation of the Philippine economy as well as utilize Industry 4.0 technologies such as the use of the automated system, smart machines/systems, industrial internet of things (IIOT), cloud computing, cognitive computing, advanced robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, among others.
Under All Qualified Activities Relating to the Fight against the Covid-19 Pandemic are the following: essential goods and services; all Qualified Manufacturing Activities such as Agro-Processing; agriculture, fishery, and forestry; strategic services such as integrated circuit design, creative industries, and telecommunications; mass housing; infrastructure and logistics, including Local Government Unit-Public Private Partnerships; innovation drivers, including research and development, commercialization of new and emerging technologies, and start-ups; inclusive business models such as agribusiness and tourism; environment or climate-change related projects; and energy.
Export Activities consist of production and manufacture of export products; services exports such as voice services; and other activities in support of exporters such as repair and maintenance and logistics services.
While under Special Laws are industrial tree plantation; exploration, mining, quarrying, and processing of minerals, publication or printing of books; refining, storage, marketing, and distribution of petroleum products; rehabilitation, self-development, and self-reliance of persons with disability (PWD); renewable energy; tourism; and energy efficiency and conservation.
On May 24, President Duterte approved the 2022 SIPP. With this, the SIPP becomes effective 15 days upon publication in a newspaper of general circulation.
The SIPP supersedes the 2020 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP), which served as the transitional SIPP to ensure the continued promotion of investments and processing of qualified projects.