PCCI forms body to identify investment destinations

Because the government has failed to give the business community a list of ideal business destinations, the business sector has come together to look for model cities for investments.

“Instead of waiting for the government to tell us where to invest, we’re scouting for prospective investments sites,” Sammie Lim, president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) said in an interview.

According to Lim, the foundation they formed dubbed as the Countryside Economic Development Foundation, will identify cities that are good investment destinations.

At the same time, Lim said the foundation will also study the 10 poorest areas that need private sector investment.

“We will be coming up with a master plan in order to identify specific investment destinations,” Lim said.

The foundation will be outlining the do’s and don’ts in investing in a particular city. They will likewise specify the risks involved in investing in a particular place.

When asked what kind of investments would be expected, Lim said it would be diverse but the most likely investments will be for housing.

However, he said the foundation has yet to set the criteria. “We will have to talk about it carefully. We want to make the list of model investment cities and 10 poorest areas that need private sector investment credible,” Lim  said.

Aside from the PCCI, members of the Countryside Economic Development Foundation are the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders Association (CREBA), Chamber of Mines, Financial Executives Institute (Finex), Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI), Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport), Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) and the National Federation of Hog Farmers.