Read this in The Manila Times digital edition.
THE ambassador of Denmark said the Philippines should reduce red tape if it wants to attract more foreign investors.
Ambassador Franz-Michael Mellbin said that cutting red tape will make the Philippines more appealing as a foreign investment destination.
“Red tape has to come down. Red tape is a business killer. It does not help business a lot. You know, when I talk to businesses they worry about red tape. They’d like to come here,” Mellbin said in an interview on Friday at the ambassador’s residence.
He said Denmark is interested in further developing cooperation with the Philippines in the areas of agriculture, energy, maritime sector, digitization, security and sustainability.
Reducing corruption is another key factor. “Corruption causes restriction, less predictability. Red tape and corruption are bad [for] the business environment,” he said.
“I think political will is more important than legislation. Denmark is the country in the world with the least corruption. So, corruption is actually extra worrying for Danish investors,” Mellbin said.
The ambassador said the government should also address the energy crisis. “If you want to come to the Philippines and you are into manufacturing then you will worry about if I make a large investment what will be energy profile look like. How can I be certain?”
“I think this is an important point. What we are seeing now is a lot of European companies are looking to the Philippines as an opportunity because they want to move part of their manufacturing and sourcing out of China and somewhere else,” he said.
“So, in Denmark, a lot of companies have what they call ‘China plus 1 strategy.’ They will diversify out of China. The question is who is the plus 1? Is it the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam? There are many options,” Mellbin said.
“I hope that the government and people here, the business community here, let us put the Philippines on the map and make sure you are the ‘plus one,'” Mellbin said.
He said English language proficiency is a plus for the Philippines.
“But there are also obstacles because you know it’s a tough world out there and there is a lot of competition,” Mellbin said.
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