Thousands of local jobs seen after Marcos’ China visit

MANILA, Philippines — Tens of thousands of jobs for Filipinos are expected to be generated from over $22-billion investment pledges secured by President Marcos from his recent state visit to China, Malacañang said yesterday.

Chinese investors have committed $22.8 billion in investment pledges following their meeting with Marcos and his business delegation on the sidelines of the President’s state visit to Beijing from Jan. 3 to 5.

The investment pledges include $1.72 billion for agribusiness, $13.76 billion for renewable energy and $7.32 billion for strategic monitoring (electric vehicle, mineral processing), the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said in a statement.

“Maybe, at the very least, close to… 10,000 to 30,000 jobs... It’s certainly going to produce many jobs when the investments come into play, when they start their operations,” Marcos was quoted by the PCO as saying during a media interview in Beijing last Thursday.

The President noted that some of the Chinese investors have already secured permits and started constructing and opening their offices in the Philippines.

They are also expected to start training their employees in the country “very soon,” the Chief Executive said.

“But there are other areas that are relatively new, such as the processing of minerals, battery production and electric vehicle production. These are all new. So maybe, we need to show potential Chinese investors that it is good to invest in the Philippines,” he added.

Marcos also stressed the importance of technology transfer in minimizing the repatriation of profits.

During Marcos’ visit, the Philippines and China exchanged views on priority areas for partnerships to enhance cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on scientific and technological innovation.

“So that’s what we are looking for now: to make sure that these investments not only provide jobs for the local economy, but there’s also a transfer of technology so that the repatriation of profits are minimized and the value added is left in the Philippines,” the President said.