Japan-RP Economic Pact Sets Dangerous
Precedent for the Country
The
Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) is a dangerous
first step towards complete government renunciation over policy-setting
towards the development of the domestic Philippine economy, said IBON
research head Sonny Africa.
BY IBON FOUNDATION
Posted by
Bulatlat
The Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership
Agreement (JPEPA) is a dangerous first step towards complete government
renunciation over policy-setting towards the development of the domestic
Philippine economy, said IBON research head Sonny Africa.
As the country’s first bilateral free
trade agreement (FTA) with a major economic power, the benchmark it sets
for liberalization will determine the shape of all FTAs to come, Africa
said.
If the Philippine government sets high
trade and investment liberalization standards in the JPEPA then it will be
obliged to also give these to partners in subsequent FTAs lest it be
accused of discrimination, he said. Accession to such agreements will shut
the door to genuine domestic industrial growth and economic progress.
The collapse of the World Trade
Organization (WTO) Development Round should have given the Philippine
government an opportunity to reconsider its commitment to neoliberal
economic policies. Instead, it is giving up its sovereignty piecemeal on a
country-by-country basis through bilateral and regional economic
agreements such as the JPEPA, Africa said.
He belied government claims that the JPEPA
would lead to a mutually beneficial economic partnership between the
Philippines and Japan. He pointed out that the Japanese economy (US$4.4
trillion gross national income in 2004) is 50 times larger than the
Philippines’ and per capita gross domestic product is 35 times larger.
Japan also accounts for some one-third of foreign investments (cumulative
US$3.5 billion in 2003) in the Philippines and one-fifth of its external
trade (US$14.2 billion in 2004).
The biggest gainers from the agreement
will be Japanese corporations who will take advantage of investment
incentives and cheap labor costs to set up factories in local export
processing zones. Other than producing low-wage, low-skilled jobs, these
factories will not substantially benefit the local economy since their
production inputs will mainly be sourced from their subsidiaries abroad
rather than from local firms, Africa said. He pointed out that the
country’s exports to Japan, which consist mostly of electronics, is
already low value-added, illustrated by the fact that majority of imports
from Japan are also electronic products. (See Table) Posted by Bulatlat
Table. Major
Exports and Imports from Japan, 2005
(F.O.B. Value in million US dollars) |
Exports |
Imports |
Commodity |
Value |
Percent Share
|
Commodity |
Value |
Percent Share
|
Electronic products
|
4,845.63 |
67.2 |
Electronic products
|
4,982.28 |
61.7 |
Ignition wiring sets and
other wiring sets used in vehicles |
283.98 |
3.9 |
Industrial machinery and
equipment |
676.36 |
8.4 |
Bananas (fresh)
|
172.78 |
2.4 |
Transport equipment
|
478.29 |
5.9 |
Other products manufactured from
materials imported on consignment basis
|
112.88 |
1.6 |
Iron and steel
|
273.13 |
3.4 |
Woodcraft and furniture |
101.31 |
1.4 |
Telecommunication
equipment and electrical machinery |
269.20 |
3.3 |
Source: National Statistics Office |
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