LEVERAGING WITH FOREIGN INVESTORS

LEVERAGING WITH FOREIGN INVESTORS

My dear countrymen, the late Ambassador Nick Jimenez who was both my friend and mentor, taught me a lesson that I will never forget. He said that our country should no longer pursue what he called “a diplomacy of mendicancy”, a type of diplomacy that is always begging for aid from another country, obviously referring to the United States. Ambassador Jimenez and I served together at the Philippine Embassy in Washington DC, where I was a Press Attache. At that time, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo was also serving in Washington as a First Secretary and Consul.

As a student of Political Science back in UP Diliman, I also learned about negotiating from a “position of strength”, a lesson that is not only useful in diplomacy, but also for serving in the bureaucracy. Although I am no longer in diplomacy and I have retired from the bureaucracy, I am still writing about topics that could be good for our country in general, and our economy in particular.

Indonesia's population is estimated to be between 279.8 million and 286.3 million, according to various sources. The number of smartphone users in Indonesia is estimated at over 190 million in 2023, with expectations of continuous growth in the coming years. In comparison, as of 2024, the population of the Philippines is estimated to be between 113 million and 119 million, according to various sources. As of early 2024, the Philippines had approximately 117.4 million cellular mobile connections, Although Indonesia has about 167.3 million more people than the Philippines, they only have an edge of 72.6 million users over us when it comes to ownership of mobile phones. I brought up this subject, because of news reports that Indonesia has refused to allow Apple to enter the Indonesian market, not unless they agree to the condition that 40% of the Apple phone parts must be made in Indonesia.

In this situation, Indonesia appears to be negotiating from a position of strength, because they have a market of 279.8 people that Apple wants. We could say that Apple is a big company, but Indonesia is also a big market, so both are negotiating from a position of strength. However, we could not say that Indonesia is practicing “diplomacy of mendicancy”, because they have something to offer in return.

Can we not do this in the Philippines, not only in the manufacturing of mobile phones, but also for many other products? After all, we also have a big market of nearly 120 million people? Perhaps we can try to practice a “diplomacy of parity”, wherein we could negotiate with foreign countries from a position of “mutual strength”, meaning that we both have our mutual needs and therefore we could negotiate with each other on equal terms?

When I was a new Foreign Service Officer (FSO) at the DFA, the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) taught me the difference between “comparative advantage” and “competitive advantage”. Perhaps our economic team should review are positions of strengths based on these two factors? But this time with the full realization that the size of our market is a huge leveraging factor by itself? Your friend, IKE SENERES/12-31-24/visit my blog senseneres.blogspot.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PHILIPPINE INCLUSIVE SYSTEM FOR COLLEGE ENTRY OF STUDENTS

 PHILIPPINE INCLUSIVE SYSTEM FOR COLLEGE ENTRY OF STUDENTS My advocacy partner Mr. Roi Baluyot and I have created the Philippine Inclusive System for College Entry of Students (PISCES), for the purpose of making it easier for prospective students from the marginalized sectors to enter any of the State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) that are located all over the Philippines. Although tuition is free in these SUCs, many prospective students find it difficult to proceed, because of possible expenses that they could not afford, such as books, learning materials, snacks, board and lodging, specifically for dormitory fees if they are from out of town. This idea started when Mr. Baluyot informed me that there are some UP alumni groups in the United States who are concerned about the fact that the the majority of the students who are presently enrolled in the UP campuses right now are mostly coming from the upper classes. That reality defeats the purpose of UP becoming a "university of ...
Read more

PREPARING FOR USAID PROJECT WITHDRAWALS

PREPARING FOR USAID PROJECT WITHDRAWALS The recent foreign policy shifts under returning U.S. President Donald Trump have significantly impacted global development aid, including USAID’s programs in the Philippines. With the United States reassessing its foreign assistance policies, it is almost certain that USAID funding for the Philippines will be reduced . This could lead to the slowdown—or even the complete shutdown—of various projects that have been instrumental in supporting economic development, governance, health, education, and infrastructure in the country. A Call for Proactive Government Action The Philippine government cannot afford to wait until the last minute to respond. The potential withdrawal of USAID projects must be addressed now , not when funding officially stops. A well-planned transition strategy is necessary to prevent gaps in critical services and ensure that the country’s development momentum is not disrupted. Steps the Government Must Take Immediate...
Read more

TELEMEDICINE AT THE GRASSROOTS LEVEL

 TELEMEDICINE AT THE GRASSROOTS LEVEL Marinduque Governor Presby Velasco has a wonderful plan to make telemedicine available to all the 218 Barangay Health Units (BHUs) in his island province, and I am very happy to help him with the project as his Information and Communications Technology (ICT) consultant.  Although the technology for telemedicine is already available in the market, it appears that no province has yet implemented a province wide telemedicine project that could connect patients from the grassroots level to the doctors at the municipal halls and the provincial capitol. By doing that, Governor Velasco will be able to achieve the goal of providing universal access to healthcare to everyone in his province. Although the project might appear to be complex, it is actually designed with a simple plan that would make it easy to implement. The one part of the plan is to install internet connectivity in each of the BHUs, using satellite or fiber, depending on what is av...
Read more