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THE
Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro) weighed in on
the side of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership
Agreement (Jpepa) predictably enough in the hope of
helping end the debate over the ratification of the
trade agreement.
Jetro, a
Japanese government-related organization, said some of
the economic benefits—already flogged on the Senate
ratification hearings by the Arroyo administration—of
the Jpepa include increasing the employment of
Filipinos, particularly nurses and caregivers in Japan,
boosting the country’s agriculture sector through a
large export market of mangoes, and an increase in
Japanese direct investments.
On the
other hand, IBON Foundation Inc. maintains that the
free-trade agreement violates provisions of the 1987
Constitution that are vital to the country’s future
economic development. IBON urges senators to consider
the agreement’s future impact on the country’s economic
development. IBON research head Sonny Africa said the
Jpepa violates the constitutional provision on the
“preferential use of Filipino labor, domestic materials
and locally produced goods.”
“The
Jpepa’s various provisions on National Treatment in
Articles 17 (goods), 73 (services), 89 (investment), 131
(government procurement) prevent the Philippines from
actively supporting Filipino producers,” said IBON in a
statement.
The
think-tank said the pact restricts the enactment of laws
setting economic policy by prohibiting performance
requirements. IBON said this prevents Congress from
enacting laws that ensure that the country benefits from
Japanese investments.
Africa
said in the statement the country would be prohibited
from enacting local content requirements, local labor
requirements, and technology transfer provisions.
The
organization said, however, that Japan’s Ministry of
Health, Labor and Welfare said their country needs an
additional 400,000 to 600,000 caregivers by 2014 for the
1.56 million of their aging population, opening the
sector to Filipino caregivers.
What the
Jetro did not say is that it would take almost two years
for a Filipino caregiver to fully benefit from Japanese
employment since there has to be training, working
knowledge of the language, customs and other cultural
features of Japan as well as the requirement to have a
couple of years experience in the trade and some
academic units.
But it
said that under the agreement, the Japanese government
also committed to reduce the high turnover ratio in
aged-care facilities by raising the salary of
caregivers. “This will serve as an opportunity for
Filipino nurses and caregivers to be tapped in the
Japanese market of aging population. In addition, Jpepa
ensures a nondiscriminatory treatment for these
professionals who will render services in Japan.”
IBON’s
Africa also pointed out that despite the fact the
country’s previous trade agreements allowed the share of
trade in gross domestic product (GDP) doubled and
foreign direct investments (FDIs) quadrupled,
“joblessness rose to historic highs and increased
unemployment rate to 11 percent with 11 million
Filipinos left jobless.”
He said
“the share of domestic manufacturing to GDP has
continued to fall to 23 percent, as has employment in
the sector to 9 percent, while agricultural deficits
have been high and rising since the mid-1990s.”
What
Jetro said about agricultural exports is that among the
major export items where the Philippines will get
economic benefits from are in the export of agricultural
products such as mangoes. Jetro said the country has
become very popular in Japan as a major source of
mangoes and mango products seen in Japanese supermarkets
and restaurants.
At the
same time, Jetro said the Philippines’ export value in
2006 grew at 7.4 percent from 2005 while imports from
Japan decreased to 13.2 percent. This has resulted in a
balance of trade amounting to $737 million, in favor of
the Philippines. What then is the additional value of
the pact to the Philippines?
“This
presence of mango products in the market can be credited
to the increase of Japanese tourists that go to Asean
countries for holiday.” In spite of this, however,
Japan’s
import of Philippine mango in 2006 dropped at 9.1
percent in value and 13.2 percent in volume over the
previous year.
Now
Jetro argues that through the Jpepa, it is possible to
secure zero tariff for mangoes to keep the
competitiveness of the Philippine mango in Japan.
It added
the zero tariff or other trade benefits can also be
extended to other agri-products such as banana,
pineapple, sugar, poultry and fishery products. These
trade benefits include tariff elimination, tariff
reduction or tariff quota expansion.
“The
Philippines has a dominant market share of banana and
pineapple in Japan. Through Jpepa, the Philippines can
secure its export markets,” said Jetro.
The
organization also said in terms of FDIs, the trade pact
would help more Japanese investors’ interest in the
Philippines “by providing security and certainty for
Japanese investors.” To date, it said that Japan is one
of the largest sources of FDIs for the country.
This may
be so because IBON said that, “The Jpepa’s provisions on
taxation expropriation also lay the groundwork for legal
challenges to future tax measures, effectively
protecting the profits of Japanese corporations at the
expense of the country’s right to tax all economic
activity within its jurisdiction.” |
