Asean biz sector urges P-Noy to improve infra selection

MANILA, Philippines - Businessmen from the region are urging President Aquino to improve the infrastructure project selection, streamline the delivery of such, and maximize the capacity of existing projects in line with promoting greater connectivity in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Dato’ Sri Nazir Razak, the co-chair of the ASEAN Business Club (Malaysia Chapter), said the group met with President Aquino on Wednesday to present the latest Lifting The Barriers report and ask the government for its support in the upcoming launch of the ASEAN Economic Community next year.

“We were also able to share the report with the Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, and BSP Central Bank Governor Amando Tetangco Jr.,” Razak, who is the group chief executive of the  CIMB Group Holdings, said in a briefing.

“The Lifting The Barriers report is done by economic sector. It outlines some concerns about economic integration and the remaining barriers for businesses across ASEAN,” he continued.

Razak was joined in the meeting by other business leaders from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam and Myanmar. The group was welcomed by the ASEAN Business Club - Philippine Chapter, co-chaired by Ayala Corp. chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala II and Bank of the Philippine Islands president Cezar Consing.

For the infrastructure, power and utilities sector, the group highlighted the major recommendations needed to pursue an integrated region.

A copy of the report, provided by Razak, read there should be an optimization of infrastructure portfolios or the selection of the “right combination” of projects.

“All too often, decision makers invest in projects that do not address clearly defined needs or cannot deliver desired benefits,” the report, published by the CIMB ASEAN Research Institute and the McKinsey & Company, read.

“Improving project selection and optimizing infrastructure portfolios could save 20 percent of the total productivity opportunity.”

At the same time, accelerating the approval and land acquisition processes involved in infrastructure projects was identified as an important factor in streamlining project delivery.

The report also recommended that governments make an effort in maximizing the capacity of already existing projects rather than funding new ones.

“We estimate that boosting asset utilization, optimizing maintenance planning, and expanding the use of demand-management measures can generate savings of up to $400 billion a year,” the report read.

Governments were advised to employ better demand-management approaches and use tools and charges that would help them manage demand.

“What remains clear is that full integration within ASEAN is only achievable when each individual country attains a certain basic level of infrastructure,” the report read.

“There are funds and investors eager to invest in ASEAN’s infrastructure projects, provided the right conditions for stable regulatory and policy environment are established. It is in the governments’ best interest to come together and create these conditions to catalyze the much-needed infrastructure development in these countries.”