SPEAKER Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez on Friday hailed President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. for securing pivotal support of the United States and Japan for the expansion of our country’s microchip industry and enhanced digital connectivity, as it would attract more investments, create more jobs and spur online and IT-related businesses for Filipinos.
In a Joint Vision Statement issued on the heels of the historic trilateral meeting among US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. the three leaders said they “intend to pursue a new semiconductor workforce development initiative.”
Under this initiative “students from the Philippines will receive world-class training at leading American and Japanese universities, to help secure our nations’ semiconductor supply chains.”
“These developments hold immense promise for the Filipino people, as they are poised to significantly impact investments, job creation, business expansion — particularly online and IT-related enterprises — and overall livelihood,” said Romualdez, leader of the 300-plus-strong House of Representatives.
The Joint Vision Statement cemented the announcement of the US last year for its collaboration with the Philippines to explore opportunities to grow and diversify the global semiconductor ecosystem under the International Technology Security and Innovation (ITSI) Fund, created by the CHIPS Act of 2022.
Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez estimated around US$100 billion in investment deals would be sealed in the next five to 10 years as a result of the historic trilateral meeting of the three leaders.
Among others, Marcos said the US assistance through the ITSI Fund would enable the Philippines to achieve its goal of producing up to 128,000 semiconductor engineers and technicians by 2028 as demanded by the growing industry.
The Department of Trade and Industry has reported plans for the Philippines to establish a lab-scale wafer fabrication plant for commercial and educational purposes. It would be used to train and upskill the workforce and enable the local industry to do prototyping and some tape-outs of semiconductor chip designs in the country.
In 2023, the biggest Philippine exports to the U.S. were semiconductors and integrated circuits amounting to USD3.1 billion or 23.3% of our country’s total exports to the United States.
Romualdez noted that apart from supporting the development of the local semiconductor industry, the collaboration with the U.S. and Japan extends to technology sharing to enable a secure, reliable and trusted information communications technology ecosystem in the Philippines.
He noted that as part of the Joint Vision Statement, US and Japan intend to provide at least USD8 million for Open Radio Access Network (RAN) field trials and the Asia Open RAN Academy based in Manila.
O RAN is a nonproprietary version of the Radio Access Network (RAN) system that allows interoperation between cellular network equipment provided by different vendors.
The initiative aims to enable future commercial deployment and an open, interoperable, secure, reliable, and trusted information communications technology ecosystem in the Philippines. The country eyes to pilot Open RAN in its national broadband program and free Wi-Fi project.
Meanwhile, the Speaker also expressed optimism about more foreign investments coming into the country with President Marcos’ separate engagements with U.S. and Japanese business leaders on the sidelines of the trilateral meeting with Biden and Kishida.
Among others, Romualdez cited the President’s meeting on Thursday (U.S. time) with officials of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI). The Speaker was among Philippine officials who accompanied Marcos in these meetings.
“These engagements underscore the Marcos administration’s unwavering dedication to enhancing the country’s connectivity infrastructure. By leveraging the expertise and resources of these groups, the Philippines aims to establish partnerships that will facilitate seamless integration into the global digital economy,” Romualdez said.
He noted that Congress, in collaboration with the Executive Department, has passed key legislations such as the Public Services Act, the Retail Trade Liberalization Act and the Foreign Investments Act that have opened key sectors of the Philippine economy to foreign investors.
“As our country embarks on this transformative journey towards economic resilience and prosperity, the House remains steadfast in our support to President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and his administration in advancing the nation’s interests and ensuring a brighter future for all Filipinos,” Romualdez said.
