OPINION | Philippines, RCEP and geo-economic fragmentation By Diwa C. Guinigundo READ:
TIMELAB PRO-UNSPLASHhen the Senate failed to ratify the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership due to what some senators described as “lack of safeguards for the agriculture sector,” that signaled the country’s lost opportunity to join the world’s biggest trade agreement early. That Senate deliberation in June 2022 took all ofve months since RCEP was enforced on Jan. 1 this year. At the time, both Indonesia and Myanmar were yet to ratify the regional trade pact, too.
But the prognosis for quick Senate action turned for the worse when then President-elect Bongbong Marcos called for a review of RCEP in order to “determine whether the agriculture sector is adequately protected.” If burgeoning imports threaten a local industry, for instance, WTO safeguards continue to be available to the Philippines. RCEP also provides a transitional safeguard to address this possible situation by way of suspending further reduction of customs duties or increasing them should imports surge under the RCEP.
Indonesia, though relatively late in the game, realized in a deeper way that while its exports would benet directly from RCEP, its own downstream industries are also poised to reap higher investments. With rich natural endowment, Indonesia seeks to ascend the global value chain, from raw materials exporter to processed high-value global supplier.
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