Go urges private sector to help cut PH business costs, risks

Insider Spotlight

• Presidential Adviser Frederick Go appeals for private sector input
• Government aims to lower cost, ease and improve predictability of doing business
• Seeks “actionable ideas” for reforms in second half of Marcos administration

Special Assistant to the President for Investments and Economic Affairs Frederick Go on Monday asked business leaders to help the government craft solutions to persistent barriers in the Philippine investment climate, emphasizing the need for practical, implementable reforms.

Speaking before members of the Anvil Business Club, Go said the Marcos administration has achieved significant policy milestones in its first two years but now requires private sector collaboration to accelerate progress.

“We need your ideas. We need your actionable ideas, your suggestions on what else can we do to help improve the ease of doing business and the predictability of doing business and to reduce the cost of doing business,” Go said.

Why it matters

While the Philippines has posted a steady 5.5-percent gross domestic product growth, controlled inflation, and record investment pledges, investors continue to flag red tape, regulatory unpredictability, and high transaction costs as major deterrents.

Sec. Frederick Go

The President's top economic affairs official said political will allowed the Marcos administration to press ahead with key reforms in its first half.

Go noted that reforms—including the passage of the Capital Market Efficiency Promotion Act, the new Public-Private Partnership Code, and the CREATE MORE Act—show the government’s political will to break decades-old bottlenecks.

The request

Go stressed that further progress depends on private sector participation:

• Suggestions must be “realistic” and “actionable.”
• The focus should be on ease, predictability, and cost of doing business.
• Businesses are encouraged to submit ideas through his office for inclusion in the administration’s economic agenda.

The big picture

He reminded Anvil members that government action alone is not enough, and that achieving deeper, lasting improvements in competitiveness depends on genuine collaboration with business.

As he closed, Go underscored that while government work may not be “enjoyable,” he finds fulfillment in pursuing structural reforms. He urged the Anvil members to continue doing what they do best—building businesses, creating jobs, and shaping leaders.