CBC deems attracting investors as a priority

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu to push for the passage of the Cebu Economic Development Zone (CEDZ) proposal, the Cebu Business Club believes that fixing the pitfalls in attracting investors must be prioritized.

CBC president Dondi Joseph said that the group has not yet arrived with an official decision whether to support the re-filing of the CEDZ bill led by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), saying “CBC board members have mixed opinion on the issue.”

Instead, he said the group believes that before pushing a province-wide economic zone, the province has to break the barriers of attracting investors, especially the foreign direct investments (FDIs).

Joseph enumerated some of the barriers in attracting FDIs to Cebu, which include; infrastructure, governance, bureaucracy and other obvious problems.

Although, this would mean an uphill battle to fight this perennial problems, but something has to be done, and something should be started in close partnership with the private and public sectors.

Most importantly, Joseph hopes that the newly elected leaders both in national and local government units (LGUs) levels should seriously exercise their “political will”, as the Philippines is now under the impression of pushing for “ultimate change”, especially in the political system.

Earlier, Cebu first district Representative Eduardo Gullas commended the active participation of the private sector in Cebu, including CCCI and the CBC for the passage of the House Bill 91, proposing Cebu province as an economic zone.

Gullas filed the House Bill 91 on the first working day of the 15th Congress on July 1 [2010].

Gullas hopes that CCCI, as well as other business groups in the Cebu, like CBC will join with him and pursue their plan to re-file the Bill, despite criticisms from other parties.

The CEDZ is envisioned to be a paradigm of an effective and functioning Public-Private Sector Partnership with the private sector taking the lead and government providing infrastructure and institutional support and contributing part of the needed resources.

The bill is authored by all of the eight congressmen from Cebu filed on the 14th Congress and was jointly supported by local business groups including international funding groups, like the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ).

Gullas is determined to take on the fight, and sincerely hopes that other Congressmen, who wanted to make Cebu a world-class investment destination, will join with him.

Meanwhile, CCCI is still undecided whether to pursue the re-filing of the bill, or to call it “quits”. (FREEMANSPORTS)