...the top foreign investment destination

Philippines a top foreign investment destination  with 613% surge in approved investments

PR  Newswire Asia
22 November 2019

BOI Figures Show +600% Rise by September 2019 with South Korea Topping Foreign Investments from East Asia

MANILA, Philippines, Nov. 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- New data has unveiled a surge in BOI approved foreign investments which are expected to flow into the Philippines over the next 2-3 years.

These initiatives have made the Philippines a top investment destination, largely attributable to its continuing digital transformation and combined information and communications technology (ICT) and infrastructure efforts.



Approved foreign investments by the end of September 2019 reached USD4.7 billion, a 613% rise from USD659 million in the same period in 2018, BOI figures show. Investment approvals as of September 2019 totaled USD15 billion, a 105% jump from USD7.31 billion in the same period of the previous year. 

The tourism sector also continues to rise with USD186.3 million worth of hotel and accommodation projects, while manufacturing is seeing consistent growth of USD1.24 billion of approvals, a 190% increase on last year. 

Trade and Industry Secretary and BOI chairman Ramon M. Lopez applauded the results, commenting: "This data shows that big-ticket projects are now rolling in, proving the strength and resilience of the Philippines economy in attracting foreign investors despite the global slowdown. 

"The results are a testament to the Philippines as a great place for foreign investment where business can thrive."

Explore investment opportunities in the Philippines

Investors can explore business opportunities in the Philippines at Invest ASEAN 2019 in Busan, South Korea on November 25-26 where the BOI will represent the country considered by the US News and World Report in 2018 as the best to invest in.

At this event, BOI will showcase opportunities in specific priority sectors: manufacturing, specifically electric vehicle and auto parts; infrastructure and construction; and tourism

"This growth, together with a suite of incentives such as tax holidays and exemptions from duties on imported spare parts makes the Philippines an enviable investment destination and one-stop-shop for business within Asia and beyond," added Lopez. 

...the Billboard 's Next Big Sound toppers

Pinoy group SB19 enters Billboard' s Next Big Sound Chart

ABS-CBN News
20 November 2019

MANILA -- Pinoy pop group SB19 has earned a spot on a Billboard chart which lists musical acts for their fast-rising popularity.

On Wednesday, SB19 grabbed the sixth spot on Billboard's Next Big Sound chart, behind K-pop boy band A.C.E.

he Next Big Sound chart tracks "the fastest accelerating artists during the past week, across all major social music sites, statistically predicted to achieve future success," according to the Billboard website.

The chart is measured by Next Big Sound, an American company which provides analytics on online music.

Fans of the five-member group took to social media to celebrate the milestone, with the hashtag #SB19onBillboardNBS topping local Twitter trends on Wednesday morning.

Comprised of Sejun, Stell, Ken, Josh, and Justin, SB19 debuted in October 2018 with the song "Tilaluha."

The group achieved mainstream popularity after a video of the members' dance practice for their sophomore single, "Go Up," went viral on social media in September.

• The group, which is managed by a Korean entertainment company and whose members trained in South Korea, is noted for its synchronized dance performances.
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...the PH improved world talent ranking

Philippines up 6 notches in world talent ranking

Louella Desiderio
Philippine Star 
19 November 2019

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines was among 63 countries that posted the biggest climb in the latest World Talent Ranking (WTR) report of the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), as it rose six places to 49th place from 51st last year.

The country remained the laggard however, among Southeast countries.

Released in partnership with the Asian Institute of Management Rizalino S. Navarro Policy Center for Competitiveness in the Philippines, the WTR looks at countries’ ability to attract, develop and retain an employable talent pool.

The other countries which posted the biggest improvements are Taiwan, which went up seven places to 20th; Lithuania, which rose eight notches to 28th; and Colombia which advanced six places to 54th.

While the Philippines’ ranking improved in this year’s report, it was still behind its peers in the region.

All other Southeast Asian countries included in the report had better rankings than the Philippines such as Singapore (10th), Malaysia (22nd), Indonesia (41st), and Thailand (43rd).

In ranking countries, the WTR looked at three factors such as investment and development, appeal and readiness, and took into account responses to IMD’s executive opinion survey.

In the investment and development factor which measures funds poured in, as well as development of domestic human resources, the Philippines ranked 61st, up from the 62nd spot last year.

“This represents a one-place improvement from 2018, but this factor has consistently ranked in the 60s. Its low rank was mostly driven by pupil-teacher ratio in primary and secondary education and public expenditure on education per student,” IMD said.

As for the appeal factor, which looks at the ability to attract and retain high-quality talent from abroad, the Philippines rose to 31st place from 38th a year ago.

IMD said the highest ranked indicators for the Philippines under the appeal factor were cost of living and effective personal income tax rate, while the lower ranked ones were quality of life, justice, and brain drain.

When it comes to the readiness factor which assessed the quality and growth of the existing talent pool, the country placed 26th, 11 places higher than the previous year’s 37th.

“The relatively higher rank of the readiness factor was mostly driven by indicators on skilled labor, language skills, and share of science graduates among college degree holders,” IMD said.

Switzerland continued to top the WTR, strengthening its position as a global talent hub.

This was followed by Denmark in second place, and Sweden on the third spot. Mongolia, on the other hand, was at the bottom of the list or 63rd place.

...the world's most diverse football team

Philippines taking multicultural dream on to global stage

FIFA.com
19 November 2019

There is not a national squad like that of the Philippines anywhere else on the planet. This statement can only be understood by delving a bit deeper into the team’s recent history.

In 2005, an anonymous video games fan got in touch with the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) to inform them that Phil and James Younghusband, two English brothers coming through Chelsea’s youth set-up, had a Philippine mother and were eligible to play for the Azkals.

In a region where basketball and boxing tend to take centre stage, it was essential for the PFF to find a way of boosting football’s profile and popularity. And that is where history plays a decisive role: throughout the last century, Filipinos were long associated with searching for opportunities far outside their borders. As a consequence, thousands of Filipino citizens and their descendants play in countries with a richer footballing history.

The Miracle of Hanoi

The idea of unearthing players in far-flung parts of the world began to take shape, but results did not initially follow. The PFF decided not to enter the qualifying campaigns for the 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cup™ tournaments, because, despite the significant economic and logistical efforts being made, the team’s level of play was still too low. In the end, the transformation of the Filipino national team was achieved through a focus on improving competitiveness, which would eventually bear fruit at major tournaments.

One of the most striking examples of tangible progress came at the AFF Championship, a competition which pits some of the best nations in south-east Asia against each other every two years. In 2010, Vietnam – hosts and defending champions – were drawn to play Philippines in the second match of the group stage – a daunting challenge for a side that had lost five and drawn one of their last six games.

However, an eye-catching performance by the Azkals led to what is now commonly known as the 'Miracle of Hanoi'. Goals from the English-born pair of Chris Greatwich and Phil Younghusband silenced the 40,000 home fans, in the new mixed-race generation’s first landmark victory.

From video games to social networks

Following that memorable success, a number of players with Filipino parentage expressed a desire to represent the national team.

Sometimes, it was the PFF that took the first step. “My mum is from the Philippines, and they contacted me to find out if I wanted to be part of the team,” forward Angel Guirado – born in Spain, and a Filipino international since 2011 – told FIFA.com.

On other occasions, word of mouth and the emergence of social networks provided the link. “I had a friend who played with Angel Guirado in Spain, and I’d heard the story,” explained Carli De Murga, who is another Spaniard with a Filipino mother, and who has also represented Philippines since 2011. “I contacted Angel through Facebook, and he put me in touch with the Federation. I sent them a video and they called me up straight away.”

Currently, the squad includes footballers born in 12 different countries: Germany, England and Spain make up the majority, but Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Scotland, Australia, Italy, Switzerland, Japan and the United States also feature.

What is it actually like to be part of such a multicultural squad? “The atmosphere is brilliant,” said De Murga. “Personally speaking, playing in the same jersey as people with so many different cultures and customs has really helped me to mature. It broadens your horizons. And I love that everyone’s also quite alike, and that we all feel comfortable in each other’s company.”

Syria showdown key to World Cup dream

Playing in this diverse and familiar environment has started to pay dividends. In January the Filipinos competed in the AFC Asian Cup for the first time, and they currently find themselves in an advantageous position in the second round of Asian qualifying for Qatar 2022.

Philippines lie third in Group A, with the same number of points as China PR. A draw in their upcoming match with Syria would be enough to move them up into second spot (based on their record, the runners-up may qualify for the third round), at least until the next round of games in March.

“That would be amazing – a fantastic achievement!” said Guirado from the team’s camp in Dubai, where the match is due to take place. “In football, nothing is impossible. The result in our first game with Syria (a 5-2 defeat) did flatter them quite a bit.”

“It’s now or never,” said De Murga. “We have an historic opportunity. Syria have a lot of talent up front, but they sometimes leave themselves open at the back. We have to play as a unit, try to frustrate them, and do them damage any time we get a chance.”

Curiously, Phil Younghusband, the youngest of the two long-serving siblings, announced his retirement from football on Monday. He bids farewell to the game as Philippines’ most capped player (108 appearances) and their all-time top scorer (52 goals), and will likely look on with great excitement as the world’s most multicultural team attempt to pull off another impressive result on Tuesday.