President Rodrigo Duterte’s singing of the Ease of Doing Business Act (EODB) was welcomed yesterday by the Trade department and business chambers, which said that streamlined government processes would improve the country’s attractiveness to investors.

“Under the EODB/Efficient Government Act, businesses can expect streamlined processes, reduced processing times from all government agencies, including government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs),” Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said in a statement.

The law, signed by Duterte on Monday, mandates government agencies to comply with prescribed processing times. In particular, simple transactions should be completed within three working days, seven working days for complex transactions, and 20 working days for highly technical transactions.

The EODB-EGSDA Act, which amended the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007, requires all local government units to streamline procedures for the issuance of business permits, clearances and other types of authorizations by implementing unified business application forms.

Local government units (LGUs) were mandated to set up business one-stop shops and the law also provides that barangay clearances and permits be issued at the city or municipality to speed up transactions.

The law also calls for the creation of a Central Business Portal that will receive and capture data on business-related transactions and a Philippine Business Databank that will provide LGUs and national government agencies with information to verify the validity and existence of businesses.

European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines President Guenter Taus said EODB should encourage investors to set up shop.

“We also hope that the enactment of this law will improve the ranking of the Philippines in the World Bank Doing Business report, and provide for a more business-friendly and competitive environment,” he said.

“This is a step in the right direction in making the Philippines more competitive, especially against its regional neighbors,” Taus added.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), meanwhile, said the law would “put teeth” into the administration’s promise of reducing bureaucracy and corruption.

“It will especially help and support the MSMEs (medium, small and micro enterprises) who are burdened by many old and new compliances. Many of them require frequent follow-ups to get,” PCCI Chairman George Barcelon said.

“Hopefully, government agencies both national and local will take cognizance of this important legislature and seriously study how to improve efficiency,” he added.

This article was originally published in The Manila Times on May 30,2018»