Friday, April 20, 2012

Philippine Electronics Industry

President Benigno Aquino III has cited the country's semiconductor and electronics industry for employing some 530,000 Filipinos.

He noted that after a decade of accounting for an average of about 65 percent of the country's total exports, the number dropped to around 50 percent last year.

This, he said, contributed to the decline in total merchandise exports, which pulled down the 2011 gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

"Despite this, your industry was able to hire even more Filipino workers—and for that we are eternally grateful. I am told that direct employment in the industry grew by six percent, in spite of the downturn, from 500,000 in 2010 to 530,000 in 2011. Obviously, this is an encouraging sign," he said.

President Aquino spoke Friday afternoon at the 17th World Electronics Forum and Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. 108th General Membership Meeting at the Mactan Shangri-La Island SPA and Resort, Punta Engano Road, Lapu-Lapu City.

President Aquino said the Philippine economy is inextricably tied to the performance of the semiconductor and electronics industry, "whose growth and resilience has been nothing short of exceptional" despite the global conditions in the past couple of years.

He told delegates that the educational reforms his administration is implementing are designed to move Filipino workers higher up the value chain.

"The K-12 system, set to begin this June, is a long-term solution that can address our students' goals to become globally competitive," he said.

President Aquino said targeting systems are in place to enable the Filipino workforce to supply more specialists to industries that demand them.

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