South Korean companies have invested 53.982 billion pesos, generated $ 1.095 billion and to date provided 42,675 jobs for Filipinos in various economic zones of the country, according to the Economic Zones Authority of the Philippines (PEZA).

PEZA Managing Director Charito “Ching” Plaza revealed this while expressing appreciation for the contribution of South Korean companies to the Philippine economy at the 11th Global Biz with PEZA forum focused on promoting investment opportunities between the Philippines and South Korea through the development of the ecozone. Plaza said there were 320 Korean companies registered with PEZA as of September 2021.

South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Kim In-Chul and Philippine Ambassador to South Korea Maria Theresa Dizon-De Vega were present at the forum to share their expertise in bilateral trade and economic relations between the two countries. .

To complement this, PEZA has put in place various “balancing acts and commercial assistance” to its registered businesses and provides unhindered services as they contribute to global supply and demand.

“We are not letting this crisis get in our way, rather we are continuing our tireless efforts to attract and invite investors. We are also establishing new partnerships with various government agencies so that we can attract more local and foreign investors to do business in the Philippines by improving investment efficiency factors, ”said the head of PEZA.

For her part, Ambassador De Vega said the Philippines continues to invite South Korea to help propel the country’s growth, which is being shaped by the realities of the new normal. De Vega cited the Philippines’ need to rebuild better and take a forward-looking, innovative, green and resilient approach.

Ambassador De Vega noted that the pandemic has not hampered the Philippines ‘economic relations with South Korea, saying that by 2020, the Republic of Korea was the Philippines’ 5th largest trading partner out of 225 trading partners. South Korea is also the Philippines’ 7th largest export market out of 213 markets and the 4th largest import supplier out of 205 Philippine suppliers. Total bilateral trade was valued at $ 13.92 billion.

Meanwhile, Korean Philippine Chamber of Commerce (KCCP) President Ho-Ik Lee pointed out that there are still various reasons affecting the decision of Korean investors to invest in the Philippines. These include the limitation and restrictions on foreign participation in land ownership in the country.

Plaza explained that land ownership in the country is a policy enshrined in the Philippine Constitution. To address this challenge, Plaza said PEZA is adapting the transformation roadmap, which seeks to address what it called the “efficiency factors” that investors look for when investing overseas.

“In addition to the PEZA service brand, we now think globally and act locally with the Transformation Roadmap, which aims to continuously promote and improve the competitiveness of the Philippine market and contribute to the global supply chain” , Plaza said.

This was supported by testimony from Samsung Electro-Mechanics Philippines Corporation (SEMPHIL), the main Korean localization company of PEZA. According to Dong-hoon Lee, Chief Financial Officer of SEMPHIL, “PEZA has been a close partner in our business journey. He cited PEZA for streamlining rules and procedures, allowing investors to understand quickly and decisively. Specifically, he cited PEZA’s one-stop-shop operation. “We can say that investing in the Philippines under PEZA has a great advantage, with a professional, efficient and knowledgeable team to meet the needs of investors,” he said.

The Philippines-Korea Free Trade Agreement, which should encourage

Korean companies are looking to the Philippines for more investment opportunities, especially in advanced and forward-looking industries.

“Korea’s status as a high-tech and innovation-driven economy makes it an attractive development partner for the Philippines in various sectors, ensuring that the development of the Philippines in these sectors is essential in helping the country to fulfill its long-term commitments to inclusive green growth. and sustainable development ”, noted Ambassador De Vega.

With this, the Ambassador expressed the hope that more Korean companies will take advantage of the FTA to boost trade between the two countries.

Ambassador Kim also added that “when the FTA comes into effect, a forward-looking framework for collaboration will be created not only to promote trade and investment between our two countries, but also to jointly fight against the spread. infectious diseases and climate change ”.