The Philippines ... an introduction

by HE M Edgardo B Espiritu, Philippine Ambassador to the Court of St James's

As Ambassador to the Court of St James’s, I am delighted to be able to tell you something about my country, the Philippines, an exciting place for business, tourism and its amazing natural environment. It is one of the lesser-known Asian countries, positioned as one of the further south eastern countries in Asia. Its history has included over 370 years of western rule – first by Spain and later the influence of America. The county is largely Christian and English is taught at school so almost everyone is fluent and has an excellent command of the language, albeit a bit “Americanised”.

The Philippines is an archipelago consisting of some 7107 islands of which only around 3000 are inhabited. Most of the population is concentrated on 11 islands and the country is divided into three geographical regions. The population is over 92m, of which over 8m live and work abroad. This has resulted in over 10% of GDP being remittances from the diaspora. Many are professionals, being employed as engineers, architects, doctors and nurses, accountants, IT professionals, construction workers, domestic help and technicians.

The climate is usually warm and somewhat humid. The country is increasingly promoting itself as a “natural treasure” with government focus on the environment and ecology. The flora and fauna are diverse and include many unique indigenous species – in fact, a recent tourism campaign has specifically focused on bird watching as there are over 600 species, almost 200 of which are only found in the Philippines. The Philippines is a nature-lovers paradise where you can combine the pleasures of a relaxing holiday with the opportunity to enjoy the fascinating flora and fauna. Adding a few days to the end of a business trip is also a wonderful opportunity.

On the business front, people are starting to compare us to India, in particular, because of the growth in IT and, particularly, in call centres and business process outsourcing. The cost of living is very reasonable, the quality of life excellent and the country has one of the highest literacy rates in Asia.

Other industries are also growing, including the areas of manufacturing (in particular in automotive parts), food processing, electronics, textiles and garments. There is also a large indigenous mining industry as the country is rich in cadmium, gold, chromite, copper, iron, manganese, mercury, molybdenum, zinc, silver and nickel. It is the biggest copper producer in Southeast Asia and among the top ten producers of gold in the world.

The country is very active in the area of renewable energy, including hydroelectric and geothermal (accounting for over 20% of the energy generated). There are also coal reserves and natural gas has recently been discovered in the Palawan islands.

Our country offers exciting and rapidly-developing business opportunities combined with an excellent quality of life, reasonable cost of living and a natural environment for everyone to enjoy, whether just for relaxation or as a serious nature lover or environmentalist.

To find out more about business, tourism and other opportunities that the Philippines has to offer you, contact:
The Philippine Embassy, 6-8 Suffolk Street, London SW1Y 4HG
E: (Commercial) dtilondon1@aol.com; pticlondonuk@aol.com
E: (Tourism) infotourism@wowphilippines.co.uk

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