Chinese tourists, investors still welcome to Phl — NEDA chief

The Philippines remains open to Chinese investments and tourists despite the recent incident in the disputed Ayungin Shoal that left Filipino soldiers injured, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said on Wednesday.

In a panel during the East-West Center’s International Media Conference in Pasay City, Balisacan emphasized the interconnectedness of regional economies and the importance of global supply chains despite the tensions.

"We have no intention of restricting investments or tourists from China. Everyone is open to coming to the country for investment as investors, as tourists," Balisacan said.

Balisacan said that China's official development assistance (ODA) has also been "very small," making up only about 5 percent of all the aid the country receives.

This is because China has been getting aid from a variety of sources, such as other countries and international organizations.

However, Balisacan acknowledged the impact of geopolitical tensions on trade, though he cautioned against directly attributing a recent decline in foreign direct investments (FDI) solely to this factor.

"Nobody is spared from supply chain disruptions," Balisacan said, citing both natural disasters and geopolitical tensions as potential causes.

Balisacan also added the Philippines has been affected one way or another, directly or indirectly, on the broader global and regional trends of declining FDI, making it difficult to isolate the specific influence of geopolitical issues.

"I don’t think that we can directly attribute to that (geopolitical tensions) because overall in the world, global and Asia Pacific, FDI has been falling down and so to what extent you can attribute to geopolitical issues is not clear," the socioeconomic planner said.

"It could be one of those (factors) directly, indirectly, but it’s hard to attribute that in the absence of more information," Balisacan added.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said last week that a clash between a Chinese ship and a Philippine Navy ship on a regular rotation and restocking (RORE) mission in the Ayungin Shoal left a service member with a "serious injury."

Later, it came out that the service member had lost a thumb in the event. Both the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Pentagon have condemned it.

The boat was going to the BRP Sierra Madre, which has been stuck in the Ayungin Shoal since 1999, on a RORE operation. More than a dozen Marines and sailors work on the ship, which has become a symbol of Philippine authority in the area out to sea.

The nearest province in the Philippines is Palawan, which is 105.77 nautical miles away. Ayungin Shoal is part of the country's 200-nautical-mile continental shelf, as defined by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).