The Philippines’ more than 90 million people are the country’s key assets. The depth and quality of its human resources make the Philippines an attractive place for people doing business.
Filipino employees are renowned and trusted worldwide. The great Filipino worker is known for his diligence, hard work, creativity, professionalism, technical skills, and English proficiency. In the recent survey of Global English Corporation, a cloud-based advance English literacy software provider, the Philippines ranked as the best in the world in terms of Business English Proficiency.
In the Philippines, investors are assured of continuous supply of quality workforce – whether for labor-intensive industries or sectors requiring highly-skilled professionals. Education is valued in the Philippines, with every Filipino family striving to bring their children to school. Since 2001, university and college graduates grow about 3% annually. Every year, the Philippines produces almost half a million graduates of various courses.
A founding member of ASEAN, the Philippines is a middle-income ASEAN Member State but is today considered the new tiger in Asia amid strong growth. In 2012, the Philippines GDP grew by as much as 7.1% surpassing economists’ forecasts. In the same year, the Philippine Stock Exchange Index posted 38 all-time highs. FDI inflows average US$2 billion in the past six years and are expected to increase further as the country’s growth momentum continues.
Opportunities abound for investors targeting the sectors of business process outsourcing, electronics, agriculture, renewable energy, infrastructure, and shipbuilding. For more information, see www.investphilippines.gov.ph.
Facts and Figures
| Capital | : | Manila |
|---|---|---|
| Demography | ||
| Land Area | : | 300,000 sqkm |
| Population | : | 95.8 million |
| Urban population rate | : | 66.4 percent |
| Age clustering | : | |
| Children below 5 yrs old | : | 11.7 percent |
| Youth 15-29 yrs old | : | 28.0 percent |
| Elderly over 65 years old | : | 4.3 percent |
| Active workforce 20-44 yrs old | : | 37.0 percent |
| Life expectancy | : | 70.4 years |
| Net enrollment in primary education | : | 85.7 percent |
| Adult literacy rate | : | 93.6 percent |
| Economy (as of 2011) | ||
| GDP | : | US$ 24.3 million |
| GDP per capita | : | US$ 2,341 |
| Inflation | : | 4.2 percent |
| FDI | : | US$ 1.26 million |
| Total trade | : | US$ 111.75 million |
| Tourist arrival | : | 3.92 million |
| Currency | : | Philippine peso |
| Infrastructure (as of 2011) | ||
| International airports | : | 12 international airports |
| Major sea ports | : | 21 major ports |
| Road length | : | 31,359 square kilometers |
| Paved network | : | 24,834 square kilometers |
| Percentage of paved roads | : | 79 percent |
| Vehicles per 1000 persons | : | 74 |
| Internet subscriber per 1000 persons | : | 290 |
| Cellphone per 1000 persons | : | 920 |
| Other Information | ||
| Languages | : | Official languages are Filipino and English |
| Religion | : | Predominantly Roman Catholic |
| Race | : | Are of Malay descent, but many have mixed ancestry such as Chinese and Spanish |
Note: Some figures may vary with figures in the AMS’ website due to differences in covered period or record year. Most data were culled from the ASEAN Secretariat Statistics Leaflet Year 2012 which consolidated ASEAN data as of end 2011. Figures in the AMS website may either be as of pre-2011 or as of post 2011.
