Enhanced incentive package
Ecozone investors lobby to lure locators
THE Mindanaobased economic zones (ecozones) investors agreed on Wednesday, Oct. 5, to lobby to the national government the proposed enhanced incentives package to lure more prospective locators in Mindanao ecozones amidst the ongoing discussion to rationalize fiscal incentives.
Mindanao Development Authority (Minda) Chief of the Investment Promotion Division Ernie Tomas Jr. told Sun.Star Davao in an interview Thursday that a drafted position paper backed by Mindanao Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) seeks to enable the agencies and investors to continue to enjoy fiscal incentives and shall have preferential exemption from the proposed rationalization of fiscal incentives under House Bill no. 231 and continue to administer the granting of fiscal incentives under Executive Order (EO) 226.
The bill is "an act rationalizing the grant and administration of fiscal incentives."
Tomas said that Zamboanga Ecozone administrator Christopher Lawrence Arnuco shared and discussed the position paper in the recent ecozone investors meeting here in Davao City. The meeting was attended by some 40 participants, 20 of which are ecozone investors.
He reiterated that the proposal is important because it would help address the lack of locators’ problem of the industry.
Meanwhile, Tomas said that the immediate output of the meeting was for Mindanao IPAs to continue meet on a regular basis for joint planning and programming of activities.
“The Mindanao IPAs agreed to create a mechanism where ecozones in Mindanao can regularly meet for joint activities such as joint planning and joint promotion and continue the information exchange between Minda and among IPAs,” Tomas said.
Heidi Villanueva of the Ecozone Planning Group in Minda earlier bared that Mindanao currently has 80 proclaimed ecozones, some are op-
erating while others are developing.
Of the figure, 26 of these ecozones are focused on the Information Technology-Business Process Management (IT- BPM) industry, 20 agro-industries, 28 manufacturing industry, four tourism sector, and the rest on medical tourism.
Asked on why finding locators is among the major setbacks on ecozones here, Tomas said peace and order situation and lack of awareness of the existence of ecozones are among the reasons.
To address this, Tomas said, intensified promotion on ecozones is needed.
Some of the ecozones in Mindanao are Davao Industrial Estates in Panabo City, Hijo Resources in Tagum City, Ciudades in Davao City, Davao South Marina and Industrial Park in Malita, Davao Occidental and Davao South Greenspace EcoIndustrial Park in Sta. Cruz, among others. ASP