Phl joins list of Next 11 Emerging Markets

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines has been included in the roster of the so-called Next 11 Emerging Markets but has lagged behind other countries in terms of investments, according to PhilDev trustee Winston Damarillo.

PhilDev (formerly Ayala Foundation USA) is a public charity registered with the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as a tax-exempt organization composed of Filipinos and Filipinos-based overseas. Its focus is on building “an ecosystem of science and technology-based enterpreneurship and innovation for social and economic development of the Philippines.”

Diosdado Banatao is PhilDev’s chairman, Fernando Zobel de Ayala is vice chairman, while Damarillo is a trustee and a member of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Damarillo said the members of the Next 11 Emerging Markets are Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, South Korea, the Philippines, Turkey and Vietnam. They follow the BRIC nations consisting of Brazil, Russia, India and China.

The PhilDev trustee said that since 2003, two-thirds of foreign investments in infrastructure have gone to Vietnam, and the Philippines was getting “change” compared to the amount of trade investments coming into Asia and the rest of the Asean nations.

Damarillo, quoting WEF data, said that one of the major reasons for the lack of trade investments is the lack of power or inexpensive power sources. The Philippines is a net importer of crude and coal.

Yet the rest of the Asean has increasingly tapped renewable energy (RE) sources. In fact, Asean as a group is the leader in cheap and sustainable RE.

The Philippines is the second largest user of geothermal power and has the potential to develop RE, especially biomass-sourced power. The Asean nations are also a net importer of oil but a natural gas exporter.

“It is estimated that the Asean will be increasing the use of hydro energy sources from a little over 12 percent in 2008 to nearly 15 percent by 2035. In the same time frame, it will likewise outpace the rest of the world in the use of geothermal, marine, biomass, solar, and wind as energy sources,” Demarillo said.

Damarillo, who is the chief executive officer of MorphLabs (California), noted that the Asean bloc consumes more food than it produces, and that it was forecast that potable water needs will outpace energy demand in Asia.