Aboitiz Group President and CEO Sabin M. Aboitiz joined Asia-Pacific business leaders at the APEC Business Advisory Council I (ABAC I) meetings held in Singapore to discuss the region’s agenda on accelerating COVID-19 pandemic recovery, boosting inclusive and equitable growth, and strengthening relations with dialogue partners.
Speaking in his new role as the Co-Chair of the Regional Economic Integration Working Group (REIWG) on Strengthening Services Trade and Investment, SMA backed the services space as an engine for regional growth and recovery amidst the economic downturn, and underlined the need for closer cooperation between the private and public sectors in the development of an innovation ecosystem in the Asia-Pacific.
“I believe that our growth in services will primarily come from innovation. We need to focus on the ‘Next Big Thing’ by building economies and policies for the future, building ecosystems and environments that foster innovation and disruption to the fullest, and strengthening collaboration between the public and private sectors,” he asserted.
Recounting the collapse of the Asian tiger economies in the 1990s which was fueled by a heavy dependence on export-led growth, SMA further stressed how innovation can play a role in diversifying risks through its potential to advance various industries and make processes more streamlined through technologies.
“We could have a more robust agricultural economy in the Philippines if we build it through innovation and disruption. With new technologies and data science, we can be more efficient and increase productivity and income for farmers. I think we can all agree that if there’s one positive that came out of the pandemic, it’s the acceleration of innovation,” he explained.
Moreover, SMA noted that as services begin to innovate and move up the value chain, priority must also be given towards upskilling workers and investing in education, R&D, technology, and data science in order to ensure a future-ready workforce that can be absorbed by the sector.
We need to focus on and invest in people first. In the Philippines there is evidence that our people are developing their skills, thinking, and values with each succeeding generation. Our young and progressive Metro Manila mayors are a good example of this, where they have shown exceptional innovative governance and crisis management during the pandemic.
—SMA
As the Services Trade co-chair, SMA pointed to the Services Work Plan for 2022 which urges APEC economies to champion policies that support, incubate, and institutionalize an enabling environment for innovation and other emerging trends to thrive. “As advisers to our governments for policy and structural reforms, we have to start with the changing of mindsets, and that transformation begins with you and me thinking more innovatively. We should be creating and developing ecosystems and environments that enable innovative and disruptive ideas to be born and nurtured,” SMA proposed.
He added: “We have to ensure our economies have the capacity to do that by building it in as part of the plan. We should do this in parallel with innovating for the government so we actually change the structure by not only creating the industry but making it cheaper and efficient for the government in the long term in terms of the services they provide.”
SMA cited countries such as Korea and Singapore, whose economies are built on their strong innovation culture, as aspirations for the region to emulate. “We all know that many countries are way ahead of the game because they have innovators and disruptors among them….they’re economically strong because of their innovative services and government support. That’s the kind of future we have to build for the Philippines and APEC.”
