A bill that plans to create the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has already passed on for third reading in the House of Representatives. The DICT bill or House Bill 4667 seeks to boost and improve the country’s IT facilities by being the agency tasked in developing and implementing IT policies and government programs.

Chairman of the House ICT Committee and Taguig 2^nd District Representative Freddie R. Tiñga, said that the approval of the bill would also be the answer for the country’s need for an agency responsible for IT and communication facilities.

According to an article published by The New York Times, The Philippines is now the “New Capital of Call Centers”, a position previously associated with India. This is due to the continuing growth of call centers in the Philippines, which was also labeled as the “revolution” that has “reshaped the call center business” in the world. According to the article, the Philippines call center demographic is mostly made up of young people who speak lightly accented English” and are very well oriented with the American culture.

With regards to the foreign ownership laws by its neighboring Asian countries, the Philippines is lacking initiatives on amending its laws to respond to the current global trading.  According to The Chamber of Real Estate & Builders’ Associations, Inc. (CREBA), it is time for Philippine lawmakers to review the existing foreign ownership laws of the Philippines. For CREBA, they believe that allowing foreigners to own land in the Philippines will encourage foreign investors to put bigger and more substantial investments in the Philippines and attract the much-needed capital that will create a butterfly in the country. CREBA also stated that foreign investment will also promote additional opportunities for local businesses and employment and raise additional government revenues from taxes.

Philippine real estate firm, KMC MAG Group has released its real estate market report Philippines or the real estate market research Manila for the Q3 of 2011.

The report contains summaries of the trends in commercial and residential real estate, as well as an office market overview in Metro Manila .

According to the report, the trend for the Q3 of 2011 are that rental rates of commercial spaces rose due to the increasing demand and low vacancy rates while the demand for residentials spaces surpassed the supply in the luxury residential market due to investments of the OFW and expat community. Also, the continuous construction of residential real estates has increased the overall vacancy rate in Metro Manila.

by: Austin Shi

If not done correctly from the outset, registering a business in the Philippines can be a complicated and tedious process. That is why it is important for foreign companies to be 100% compliant from the very beginning, and to familiarize themselves with the procedures in setting up and registering a business in the Philippines. In order to successfully incorporate a business in the Philippines, a number of things must first be taken into consideration. The appropriate investment vehicle must be chosen, whether it is a fully-foreign owned branch office, a fully-foreign owned domestic corporation, a fully-foreign owned representative office, or a 60/40 subsidiary, and the business must be registered with the relevant government agencies, including the Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), as well as with investment bodies like PEZA and BOI.

KMC Solutions, a sister company of Makati-based real estate brokerage firm, KMC MAG Group, recently opened a 1,050 square meter business center in Fort Bonifacio, Metro-Manila. This business center was specifically created to cater to the unique needs of Philippine companies looking to avail of seat rentals and serviced offices in major Metro-Manila business districts. KMC’s business center also targets foreign-based multinational companies setting up business operations in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. The office complex, located at the 20th floor of the Picadilly Star Building in 4th Avenue corner 27th street, Bonifacio Global City, boasts affordable rental rates and exclusive amenities, including Internet-enabled workstations, VOIP PBX for local and international calls, high-tech security systems, on-site technical support and complimentary beverages, among others.

by: Jason dela Torre

Renewable energy is a growing industry in the Philippines, thanks in part to increased investor optimism in renewable energy investments. Both foreign and local investors alike, including two of the Philippines’ top trading partners, are confident in the country’s potential as a major renewable energy investment destination. A number of foreign-based energy companies have already set up subsidiaries in the country, led by British company Bronze Oak, which established the San Carlos Bioenergy Company in 2007, and is expected to generate roughly 9 megawatts of electricity, including another 5 mW for grid export.

The last ten years has been crucial to the development of agricultural and rural infrastructure in the Philippines. The country now boasts a nautical highway which has significantly eased the transport of agricultural products from the island of Mindoro to other parts of the country. A number of modern highways and road systems have also been built to connect the areas of Clark, Subic, and Tarlac in Central Luzon, all major trading areas, thereby making it easier for farmers living in these locales to transport their goods to Metro Manila. These and other developments, coupled with the increasing popularity of agribusiness in the Philippines, has led to the development of the country’s agricultural industry, as well as to a significant increase in agricultural profits.

by: Jason dela Torre

Republic Act (RA) 9593, or the Tourism Act of 2009 passed by the Arroyo administration, cements a national policy bolstering investments and improving employment in the Philippines’ tourism industry. Fast forward to 2011, less than two (2) years since the law’s inception, and the country is seeing a rise in international visitor arrivals, which spiked to 7.89% in the first quarter of 2010.