Poverty, inclusive growth among key APEC issues
With one in four Filipinos considered poor at present, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Summit is seen as the as the best time to address poverty not only in the country but in other member economies.
“The APEC 2015 theme, ‘ Building Inclusive Economies, Building a Better World,’ calls on APEC economies to address poverty if economic growth is to be truly inclusive,” Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) undersecretary and Board of Investments (BOI) managing head Adrian Cristobal, Jr. said.
“There is probably no better time than now to further explore how we can help mitigate or reduce the incidence of poverty in APEC member economies,” he added.
Cristobal said the Asia-Pacific region is currently the global growth leader and is expected to remain as such over the medium term.
He said the economic outlook for the region remains favorable despite the slowdown experienced in recent months.
“The Philippine experience mirrors that of the larger region, driven by strong consumption figures, fresh investments, foreign remittances, and the exceptional performance of our trade, services, and business process outsourcing industries,” the DTI official said.
But despite the country’s robust economic performance over the past years, Cristobal said poverty remains as a challenge with over 25 million subsisting on incomes below a dollar a day.
The Philippines, however, is not alone when it comes to having poverty challenges as it remains a persisting problem in the region as well.
Citing a study by the Asian Development Bank, Cristobal said over 700 million people in the Asia-Pacific region live below the global poverty line of $1.25 per day.
“Through the years, a range of models and approaches have been implemented, and governments are now realizing that public policies and state programs should be complemented by business- driven solutions to poverty,” Cristobal said.
One of the new ways seen in helping address poverty is the adoption of an inclusive business model among companies. The model is aggressively being pushed by government and private sector leaders from APEC member economies.
“APEC, as a forum at the forefront of reform efforts in business facilitation, is a highly relevant and effective platform to usher in enabling policies and initiatives that support inclusive business. Since the success of inclusive business for growth will largely depend on the participation of the private sector, I believe cooperation and collaboration across member economies and business leaders is integral in elevating the inclusive business agenda in APEC,” Ayala Corp. CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala said.
Zobel de Ayala, one of the country’s most notable and prominent business leaders, said multiple sectors of society could do more to support inclusive growth in their areas of influence.
“As has been demonstrated in various commercially successful adaptations of inclusive business models, economic prosperity can only be truly sustained if this is felt across a wider segment of the population,” he said.
Though inclusive business models, both the government and the private sector agree that the group collectively known as the “base of the pyramid” could be transformed into a new market for goods and services, as well as a pool of talent, skilled labor, and entrepreneurship that strengthens companies’ supply and distribution systems.
“Inclusive business are innovative models where companies engage the poor and low- income communities as partners, customers, suppliers, and employees in their supply chains not out of charity, but because it makes good business sense. The integration of these communities into global value chains improves their quality of lives and makes for better business with diversified supply and distribution systems,” Cristobal said.
“This way, the communities are transformed into a new market for goods and services, offering tremendous source of talents, skills, and entrepreneurial drive. This partnership strengthens value chains and ensures the sustainability of businesses and their host communities while striking a healthy balance of economic gain and social good — remaining profitable and focused on growth,” he added.