MANILA, Philippines — The Board of Investments (BOI) has signed its first memorandum of agreement with a local government unit (LGU) to strengthen collaboration in attracting more investments and in promoting ease of doing business.
The BOI expressed hope that the agreement with Cabuyao City is the first of many, as the agency is also working on entering into similar MOAs with other LGUs.
Under the MOA, the BOI will promote Cabuyao as a premier investment destination by providing potential investors with relevant information on the city’s priority investment areas.
The Cabuyao government, on the other hand, will authorize the BOI in facilitating business and investments applications and follow-ups as needed.
“The MOA is a welcome development as this undertaking further complements the agency’s various initiatives to strategically promote the country as an investment destination of choice and generate the much-needed employment for Filipinos,” Trade assistant secretary Fe Agoncillo Reyes said.
“This MOA is a great opportunity because as soon as we start our collaboration, the other LGUs will also do the same. We decided to get in touch with the BOI because I believe that the key to prosperity is investments, with the help of BOI. We are the first, but I hope other LGUs will do the same,” Cabuyao City mayor Rommel Gecolea said.
Region IV-A or CALABARZON is the top location for BOI registered investment projects in the past two years.
In 2017, the region recorded a total of P294.61 million worth of investments, 187.81 percent higher than the same period the previous year.
The amount represents 47.78 percent of the total BOI-approved investments for the year.
CALABARZON is also one of the fastest growing regions in the country with a gross regional domestic product growth rate of 14.8 percent in 2016, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed.