Transiting from the previous second largest economy in Asia after Japan to the current economic downturn and the ongoing high unemployment rate, it’s the first priority of nationals in Philippines to develop economy in recent years.
Such a hope is looming. ——Since 2016, the Philippines has experienced economic growth of more than 6% for three consecutive years, becoming one of the fastest growing countries in Asia and is expected to become the “next economic miracle”. Who will be its most valuable partner in its global economic and trade cooperation in the future?
What’s the Best Choice for the Philippine People?
Unlike the United States which has gradually fallen to the geographic map in its attempt to change the world, fast-rising China has now become the largest trading partner of Southeast Asia. All ASEAN countries hope to catch up with the Chinese economy to help develop their own economies.
From August 28 to September 1, Duterte visited China again. This was the fifth time in less than three years that he had visited China as president. China is also Duterte’s most visited destination.
Bilateral relations have turned from shadow to light, and various bilateral mechanisms have also been restarted. In the past three years, under the “steering” of the heads of the Philippines and China, the two countries have fully resumed bilateral consultations in diplomacy, economy and trade, and the new maritime cooperation mechanism has been officially launched. As Chinese enterprises are highly enthused for investment and cooperation in the Philippines, and China has turned to be Philippines’ largest trading partner and its second largest source of tourists, the Philippines-China cooperation presents a new picture of “dual booming in politics and economy”.
According to the report of Philippine World News, Philippine Trade Minister Ramon Lopez said that during since Duterte took office, China’s investment increased from only 50 million US dollars to about one billion US dollars (about 6.9 billion yuan). “According to the data, as China-Philippine relations have eased, I think China’s investment in the Philippines has increased 20 times.”
The Belt & Road and the Opportunity of Philippines?
For a long time, the infrastructure construction in the Philippines has been seriously lagging behind, which has become a major concern of potential foreign investors and a major constraint on the sustainable development of its national economy.
In 2017, Duterte launched the “Great and Mass Construction” plan, which has quite a lot in common with China’s “Belt and Road”. For China, the “Thousand-Island Country” Philippines is uniquely positioned to be a natural partner for its “Belt & Road” Initiative.
In November 2018, the Philippines and China signed 29 cooperation agreements including the Memorandum of Understanding on the Joint Construction of the “Belt and Road” Cooperation. More than one-third of them involve infrastructure construction, including an industrial park renovation project involving a total of two billion US dollars (about 13.9 billion yuan), which might be one of the largest projects in the “Great and Mass Construction” plan with a total value of 180 billion US dollars.
Vicencio Dizon, vice-chairman of the Philippine Base Conversion and Development Agency (BCDA), said, “Once these industrial companies are settled, they will bring thousands of jobs.” “I believe that the Philippine people will experience the convenience in their life through the cooperative infrastructure projects brought by two the countries in the future,” said Duterte.
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