Ramos pushing for ‘2nd wave of economic reforms’

Former President Fidel Ramos urged the government yesterday to implement what he called the "Second Wave of Economic Reforms."

He named two elements of the reform package as land reclamation and increased connectivity through improved telecommunications and transportation.

Ramos, who arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) from China yesterday morning, said that as "a country of 7,107 islands" the Philippines enjoys "massive advantages" in the global economy.

He said the country’s long coastline could be put to good use in logistics distribution.

"It’s not manufacturing ice boxes and television sets anymore. It’s logistics management and distribution, what we call ‘just in time delivery’," he told a press briefing at the NAIA.

Ramos said that other countries, even those with small coastlines, had already captured a lot of the logistics distribution opportunities in the world.

Ramos led the Philippine delegation to the first High Level Forum on World Megacities Development in Nantong, China.

He said the theme of the conference was making megacities more people-friendly through the creation of additional living space and the establishment of services beyond the basic needs.

He defined megacities as metropolitan areas with a population of over 15 million.

Considered megacities by this definition are places like Mexico City and Jakarta, as well as the metropolitan area of New York.

Ramos said that Metro Manila with its 17 cities and towns and "population of close to 12 million people" may soon become a megacity.

He said development planners in megacities had largely solved basic problems in infrastructure such as inadequate transportation and telecommunications facilities and garbage disposal.

"They have put them behind," he said.

But Ramos lamented how the lack of political will is forcing the country to struggle with 50-year-old problems like Smokey Mountain and an antiquated international airport.

"It’s about time the legislature move forward in terms of giving priority to these proposed laws that have been discussed as early as 1996 or eight years ago but which are not yet enacted," he said.