PH HAS ‘LOW FIRM BIRTH RATE’

Cebu -- The Philippines' entrepreneurship ecosystem lags behind over half of the world and suffers from a low firm birth rate, an economist noted.

Kevin Chua, senior economist of the World Bank, during the third Slingshot Cebu Innovation Conference, attributes this to the policy burden of government regulations, which is one of the reasons for the current condition of the country's entrepreneurship ecosystem.

“It's less bureaucratically fun in the Philippines,” he said.

Still, he said there are various support programs from the government that are being poured in for innovative startups.

He added that Filipinos don't lack entrepreneurial spirit.

“The perceived Filipino entrepreneurial traits are above world averages,” he said.

Department of Trade and Industry Export Marketing Bureau Director Senen Perlada agreed, saying startups need to scale up and provide a sustainable economy for the country.

“More often than not, we are bogged down with dysfunctional bureaucracies and hierarchies,” he said.

Perlada said that with the passage of Republic Act 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business, the low firm birth rate will be addressed. “With that, I think we might be able to be at par with most of the other countries that are in the WEF (World Economic Forum) with regards to competitiveness,” he said./

SUNSTAR PHOTO/ALEX BADAYOS NOT SO FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES. Bureaucratic regulations are a bane to the country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, says World Bank senior economist Donald Lim (right). With the passing of the Ease of Doing Business Act, Export Marketing Bureau Director Senen Perlada (left) says this can be addressed.