New MAP chief bares 5 thrusts
Our commitment to decarbonization targets marks an important step on our journey to becoming a more sustainable company
Former cabinet secretary Rene Almendras has been named the new president of the Management Association of the Philippines as he laid down five main thrusts for the key trade group. He assumed on Thursday the new post as the 76th MAP chief.
During MAP’s inaugural meeting and induction of the MAP 2024 board of governors, Almendras said his presidency will be driven by member engagement, country competitiveness, environmental and social governance and shared prosperity, innovation, technology, digitalization, and investing in the youth.
“For the member engagement, we will ensure the relevance of the topics and issues to be taken on in the MAP general membership meetings and other activities. The objective is to engage the membership in a more meaningful way. The programs will be executed to be interactive and engaging, discussing relevant topics and developments to benefit the members, their companies, and the economy,” he said.
Further, he said that under his presidency, MAP will seek to expand outside Metro Manila to the key cities where the group can engage new members and, through technology, enable their virtual participation in various activities as the MAP’s way of helping expand business and economic benefits to the rest of the country.
To help improve the global competitiveness of the Philippines, he said he will push for vital policy reforms, through executive or legislative action, that will eliminate corruption, improve the ease of doing business, ensure food security through agricultural productivity, and sustain an enabling business environment for local and foreign investors.
“The aspiration is to attract greater and more diverse job-creating investments for more Filipinos to be gainfully employed.
“We need to respond to the reality of heightened economic inequality and the adverse long-term effects thereof. For our thrust on ESG and Shared Prosperity, we will push for the discourse and actions to encourage our members’ companies towards shared economic prosperity for all, environment and climate action, and principled business practices and governance,” according to Almendras.
Digitization is key
Almendras stressed that amid the recent technological developments that threaten jobs and the present workforce, he encouraged action to prepare for the transition, maintaining that it is imperative to encourage proper technology adoption, innovation and digitalization to address evolutionary challenges.
“We also see digitization as the key to improving the quality of service for the Filipinos and addressing corruption, both in the private and the public sectors,” he noted.
Moreover, he said the development of competencies and well-being of Filipinos, especially the youth, is now more critical amid the increased global competitive realities.
“We will continue the Campaign against Malnutrition and Child Stunting and we will advocate for the government and the private sector to pursue relevant education, health, and wellness programs, particularly for the youth. The objective is for them to become productive members of society, with competitive skills and capacity that will ensure a progressive economy in the future,” according to Almendras.
For 2024, the new MAP president also revealed that the top seven concerns of MAP members based on a recent survey in the 4th quarter of last year were corruption, ease of doing business, economy, agriculture, cybersecurity, education, and Climate Change, which according to Almendras, can be directly addressed through the five thrusts during his presidency.