Beijing-Taipei pact may affect demand for Pinoy laborers

MANILA, Philippines - The Beijing-Taipei agreement may decrease Taiwan’s demand for Filipino laborers, the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) said.

Aside from this, the agreement may also create an adverse effect on the number of Taiwanese investors and tourists in the Philippines.

“Actually we’ve already felt (the impact) even before the negotiations began,” MECO Resident Representative Antonio Basilio said, as he noted the drop in tourist arrivals from Taiwan to the Philippines.

Visitor arrivals to the country from Taiwan reached 97, 372 last year, a 14.70 percent drop from the previous year. On the other hand, Taiwanese visitors to China surged to 1,516,087 last year or by 703.25 percent from the previous year.

Basilio also said jobs for Filipinos in Taiwan may be cut as more Taiwanese firms relocate to China. “We foresee that when most of the restriction to investment from the mainland is lifted, it may result in closing and moving (to China) of some Taiwanese plants. That means less employment of our workers in Taiwan.”  As of 2009, the Philippines had some 75,000 OFWs in Taiwan.

On the upside, Basilio said the agreement could also present opportunities for the Philippines, if its “economic corridor” arrangement with Taiwan would expand to include China.

The RP-Taiwan economic corridor is a project aimed at linking the Subic and Clark economic zones to the economic zones in Taiwan, making the Philippines Taiwan’s entry point to the ASEAN market, since products processed in the Philippines can be treated as ASEAN products and enjoy duty-free privileges.

For Taiwanese businesses that also operate in China, it might be possible to find a mechanism to help transport products from one place to the other, depending on their needs, he said. The Philippines can also provide skilled labor like teachers and engineers for Taiwanese businesses aspiring to move up the value chain with high-end products.

“We’re watching the situation (of the negotiations) very closely,” he said. Last year, at least $113 million in fresh Taiwanese investments entered the Philippines.