Key Stakeholders to Concentrate on Exporting High-Value Products and Services
The making of the new Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP) for 2022-2027 will focus on the exportation of high-value products and services to tap on the unrealized export potential.
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez expressed that the agency is launching the drafting of the new PEDP, “with an overarching goal of transforming the Philippines from an exporter of commodities and intermediate goods to an exporter of high-value products and services.”
Lopez stated during the recent virtual 2021 National Export Congress, “The new PEDP will also layout aggressive and disruptive strategic directions with targeted and focused priority products and services for a promotion that will accelerate the integration and expansion of Philippine exporters in the global marketplace, both physical and digital.”
The plan will fixate more on comprehensive data analysis to guarantee that policy and strategic directions are evidence-based and take into consideration the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the flourishing trends as an outcome of the changes of global value chains.
Lopez mentioned, “Demonstrating the strong determination to recover from the impact of Covid-19, more than 3,700 Philippine exporters have access [to] new markets in 2021, taking into consideration the global developments and the need to accelerate recovery.”
Lopez noted that the Philippine export market has “a lot of potential,” however, there might be challenges along the way.
According to the export potential assessment of the International Trade Centre (ITC), the Philippines has an unrealized export potential of US$49 billion, with US$20 billion generated by-product markets specific frictions which can be realized through initiating improvements in the area of trade facilitation.
Lopez claimed that both DTI and the Export Development Council (EDC), together with several government agencies, are working on a joint memorandum circular that focuses on hastening the recovery of the export sector.
Lopez expressed, “[We are] addressing some of the key binding constraints to export growth and competitiveness in the area of trade facilitation by strengthening our partnerships with private sector partners.”
Further, Lopez noted that DTI will take on strategic shifts in export improvement and promotion, including re-analyzing measures of export success just by watching combined values and growth figures to targeted metrics.
In addition, Lopez mentioned, “Reframing mindsets from export promotion to export development with inclusive innovation industrial strategy at its core and stratifying interventions and leveraging partnerships, identifying the right interventions for each export sub-sector depending on their readiness, and their constraints to growth.”
ITC Senior Trade Promotion Officer and Project Manager Sylvie Bétemps Cochin claimed that more new firms are stronger and less affected by the pandemic.
Cochin mentioned in an event, “The access to information and market intelligence has also shown to be a key element of competitiveness in the current context and the support of business organizations has also been key.”
