Marcos: Phl 'catching up' in digitization of ease of doing business

MELBOURNE — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., on Tuesday, highlighted the need for accelerated digitalization efforts in the Philippines to enhance the ease of doing business for both investors and locals.

The Chief Executive made the remarks during his meeting with Macquarie Group Managing Director and CEO Shemara Wikramanayake during the sidelines of his participation in the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit here.

"We somehow have fallen behind in that regard, and we're trying to catch up," Marcos Jr. said, referring to digitalization.

"Digitization is a very important part of ease of doing business not just for investors, but for locals in their dealings with the government," the Chief Executive added.

Wikramanayake expressed enthusiasm about the potential opportunities for investment in the Philippines, particularly in the digitalization and energy sector.

“I am excited to talk about what more we can be doing in the Philippines because at the moment we do advisory work in investment bank, we bring our balance sheet to invest in,”Wikramanayake told Marcos Jr.

“The whole digitization process, we’re excited about. Also, the energy transition we’re excited about … we certainly invest in digitization and we invest in energy transition and in mining and building bigger advisory business,” she added.

She highlighted Macquarie Group's interest in the country's demographic profile, particularly its young and growing population, which presents a significant opportunity for growth.

“What we’re keen to do is to partner with Southeast Asia particularly with places like the Philippines, which are proving to be very good to create that environment for the pension savers money here. To bring capital to health, investing in infrastructure, etcetera,” Wikramanayake said.

For over 15 years, Macquarie Group Limited has maintained a presence in the Philippines, employing more than 1,000 individuals directly through its subsidiary, Macquarie Offshore Services. This arm of the company provides support for Macquarie's global operations in areas such as finance, technology, and risk management.

In 2012, Macquarie secured a significant milestone by winning a bid to oversee the management of the Philippines' inaugural and largest infrastructure fund, valued at PhP25 billion. This endeavor was achieved through collaboration with the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) under the umbrella of the Philippines Investment Alliance for Infrastructure (PINAI).

Furthermore, in the years spanning 2017 to 2018, Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) spearheaded a consortium that acquired a controlling interest in the Energy Development Corporation (EDC). EDC stands as the Philippines' foremost renewable energy firm, managing an impressive 1.5GW of renewable energy generation capacity. This portfolio includes diverse sources such as geothermal, solar, hydropower, and wind energy, collectively constituting approximately 20% of the nation's total installed renewable energy capacity.