What investment opportunities can be found in the Philippines’ ‘new normal’?

A high-level discussion entitled ‘Picturing the new normal in the Philippines’ was the opening panel at the ninth Arangkada Forum, held virtually over three days this year due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions.

Arangkada, meaning ‘accelerate’ in the Filipino language, is an annual event organised by the Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines to discuss ideas and formulate recommendations on key issues related to trade, investment and the business climate.

This year’s overarching theme was ‘Foreign investment in the post-pandemic Philippines’, and it was opened by keynote speakers Ramon Lopez, Secretary of Trade and Industry, and Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Chairman and CEO of Ayala Corporation, one of the region’s biggest conglomerates.

The opening speeches were followed by the panel discussion seen in this video, which was chaired by Oxford Business Group’s Managing Editor for Asia and the Middle East, Patrick Cooke. Panel participants were Kaushik Das, Senior Partner and Managing Partner, South-east Asia, McKinsey & Co; Hans Vriens, Founder and Managing Partner, Vriens & Partners; Ronal Mendoza, Dean, School of Government, Ateneo de Manila; and Victor Andres Manhit, Founder and Managing Director, Stratbase Group.