Phl on track to hitting global competitiveness ranking targets: official

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The Philippines is well on its way to achieving its goal of moving to the top third of global competitiveness rankings by 2016, a senior government official said today.

Deputy Presidential Spokesman Abigail F. Valte said the Philippines has already made "significant progress" in terms of moving up the global competitiveness rankings last year.

"At this point, the Philippines has made it to the middle-third of global tables and, in certain cases, has risen above the median, " Valte said in a statement.

She said that out of the eight major competitiveness reports released in 2013, the Philippines recorded gains in seven of them.

Valte cited the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index where the Philippines' ranking improved to 59th from 65th. The country also moved up 30 places to the 108th in the International Finance Corporation's Ease of Doing Business Index, making the largest jump worldwide.

"Much of these gains were results of new programs and initiatives by the government over the last 12 to 18 months," she said.

One of these measures, said Valte, is the creation of the Task Force on Ease of Doing Business, which sought to minimize and cut red tape in business operations. The task force identified processes which can be shortened or eliminated altogether to make it easier for businesses to set up shop in the country.

Valte said the government of Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III remains committed to the continuous roll out of reforms that will make the country more attractive to prospective investors.