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Press Release

Deputy Speaker and Antique Lone District Representative Loren Legarda renewed today her call to scale up the mainstreaming of innovation as a vital component of the country’s national development and sustainable economic growth.

“Innovation is the key that will drive the Philippines not only to achieving inclusive growth and development, but also to becoming one of the innovation leaders in Asia. In the 2020 Global Innovation Index ranking released by the World Intellectual Property Organization, the Philippines ranked 50th among 131 countries and ranked 11th among 17 economies in Southeast Asia, East Asia and Oceania.[1] This is already an improvement from our overall ranking at 54th last year,” Legarda said.

“Innovation is a vital component of the country’s development policies. Thus, we have to mainstream innovation in all government programs. If implemented properly, this will help bolster active micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), produce highly-skilled workforce, and promote competitiveness through the use and adoption of technological advancements in our different industries and sectors,” Legarda added.

Legarda, principal author of the Philippine Innovation Act, stressed that the national government should use science, innovation and technology in transforming the Philippines into a competitive nation and adopt a broader view in developing its innovation goals and strategies covering all potential types and sources of innovation.

Moreover, Legarda urged the national government to create an ecosystem that facilitates and supports innovation and entrepreneurial growth through efficient utilization of the provisions of the Philippine Innovation Act to help in addressing the pressing needs of the various sectors.

“We still have a long way to go, but the improvement in the Philippines’ 2020 Global Innovation Index ranking is already a good sign and should motivate us to further improve by putting innovation at the center of our development policies and adopt a clear, long-term view of the country’s innovation goals; improve the governance framework for innovation; and mandate key reform areas toward building a healthy innovation ecosystem for the country,” Legarda said.

Legarda pointed out that putting premium on innovation does not necessarily require additional funds. “Government agencies can very well work within their existing budget and, instead, pursue convergence with other agencies to add greater value to already existing program. One example is the convergence between DOST, and the University of Antique in my home province. Through DOST’s Community Empowerment through Science and Technology (CEST), livelihood support hubs, also known as Technohubs, are established in UA campuses, while technology-based barangay economic enterprises (TechnoBEEs) were established in some municipalities to provide assistance and support to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) depending on the existing agriculture produce of the municipality.”

Republic Act No. 11923 or the Philippine Innovation Act, which was signed into law on April 17, 2019, aims to promote a culture of strategic planning and innovation to encourage creative thinking and knowledge creation and dissemination towards expanding and maintaining economic competitiveness; improve innovation governance in the country and compel the adoption of a long-term vision and focused priorities for innovation; ensure effective coordination and eliminate fragmentation of innovation policies and programs at all levels; strengthen the position of MSMEs in the innovation system; adapting the regulatory framework to support the creation of and diffusion of new knowledge, products, and processes; encourage entrepreneurial attitude; explore, promote, and protect potentials for innovation of traditional knowledge, cultural expressions,and genetic resources; and strengthen and deepen interactions and partnerships among different actors.#

[1] https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo_pub_gii_2020.pdf

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Featured artist of the day: LUKE JOSHUA ESTRANA

Envisioning Healing and Inspiration from Abroad: Overseas Filipinos Supporting Filipino Artists in Times of Pandemic

An Online Art Exhibition starting 11 September 2020

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Mr. Rafael Consing, SVP & CFO of ICTSI (left), and Mr. Arnel Talisayon, Consul General of Geneva PCG/PM (right), served as panelists during the Consulate’s webinar on Financial Literacy.

31 August 2020, Frankfurt – The Philippine Consulate General in Frankfurt conducted last 29 August its maiden online event for members of the Filipino-German community in its jurisdiction with the Economic Diplomacy Webinar on Financial Literacy.  An online presentation of the subject was deemed fitting and timely, considering the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic in many people’s lives, including overseas Filipinos.

Consul General Evelyn Austria-Garcia provided the welcome remarks.  She extended her warmest greetings to kababayans in Southern Germany, who set aside their Saturday morning, to take part in the event.  She added that the current situation has obligated the Consulate to utilize such non-traditional means to reach out to its constituents.

Pictured above are Consul General Evelyn Austria-Garcia (left) and Deputy Consul General Emil Fernandez (right), as they participate in the Consulate’s maiden online event.

“This webinar is also an offshoot of the investment roadshow conducted by the Management Association of the Philippines in Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Munich last year, as there was a clamor from audience members to convene a forum on Financial Literacy.  It also takes the place of the Business Forum the Consulate planned during the Barrio Fiesta, which unfortunately had to be cancelled due to the German Government’s Covid-19 restrictions,” Consul General Austria-Garcia said.

Two distinguished panelists were on hand for the occasion.  Mr. Rafael Consing, who is the Chief Financial Officer of International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), discussed the importance of being financially literate and having sound financial management skills.  He provided practical advice on saving and the wise use of funds, and enumerated the various investment outlets available in the market, from short-term money market instruments, such as treasury bills, commercial papers and mutual funds, to the more volatile stock market, which has the potential to generate higher returns in the long run.

Mr. Consing is an accomplished finance executive with extensive experience in investment banking and global markets, corporate treasury and finance, investor relations, global insurance and risk management.  He assumed various roles in several leading financial institutions, including HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Bankers Trust and ING Barings.  He served as Vice President and Treasurer of Aboitiz & Company, before joining ICTSI, one of the top port operators in the world.  Mr. Consing is a sought after speaker on the subject and has been the recipient of several accolades, including being recognized by the Corporate Governance Asia as Asia’s Best CFO for Investor Relations, inclusion in Institutional Investor’s All-Asia Executive Team, twice being named Best CFO in the Philippines by Alpha Southeast Asia, CFO of the Year by CFO Innovation, and Treasurer of the Year-Philippines by The Asset.

Mr. Arnel Talisayon, on the other hand, centered his presentation to those with a higher tolerance for risk and a more entrepreneurial mindset.  He discussed the opportunities and challenges in engaging in a business.  He talked about the common mistakes made by overseas Filipinos and practical matters that can be expected with startups in the Philippines.  He also delved on other important aspects of financial education, such as retirement and social security, and addressed the question: is establishing a business the ultimate goal of financial education?

Mr. Talisayon currently serves as Consul General at the Philippine Mission/Consulate General in Geneva and also handles intellectual property issues. He began teaching Financial Education to overseas Filipinos while on assignment at the Philippine Embassy in South Korea.  He graduated from the UP College of Business Administration, studied Business and Economics as a fulltime exchange student at the Meiji Gakuin University in Japan and was a student fellow in Communication Studies at the Nanyang Technological University of Singapore.

The forum was capped with a question-and-answer session, as viewers were able to post their questions through the FB’s comments section.  The activity was held via Zoom and simultaneously streamed live in the Consulate’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/PHinFrankfurt/, where it may still be viewed by interested parties.  Fifty-one attendees viewed the live proceedings and a video recording of the webinar has been seen over 1,900 times in just 2 days.  (END)