Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors president Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo (left), Department of Trade and Industry undersecretary for competitiveness and innovation Rafaelita Aldaba (center) and Society of Philippine Motoring Journalists president Pinky Colmenares lead the electric vehicle forum.
THE Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) and the Society of Philippine Motoring Journalists (SPMJ) held a forum tackling the future of the domestic automotive industry and the budding local market for electric vehicles (EVs).
The two organizations invited Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) undersecretary for competitiveness and innovation Rafaelita Aldaba to the forum, which AVID said was its second for the year. The group added the activity reaffirmed its commitment to sustaining inter-sector dialogue on auto industry competitiveness amid “ever-shifting local, regional and global socio-economic backdrops.”
“What will be the growth track for this economy? This is something important to think about. And while we won’t stop talking and discussing, we should move on to action in the interest of the industry’s sustainability. The media can amplify our voice; let’s start with a more fruitful partnership today,” said AVID president Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo.
The executive expressed optimism over AVID’s partnership with the SPMJ, saying this will “strengthen efforts to communicate auto industry policies to the general public.”
The forum was livestreamed on Motoring Today’s Facebook page.
AVID said Aldaba leads the DTI’s initiatives in establishing an inclusive innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in collaboration with other government agencies and businesses. The group added the DTI official also oversees the formulation and implementation of the Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy (i3S), a national industry roadmap that emphasizes the importance of innovation.
Aldaba discussed the i3S strategy and inclusive innovation, as well as policy directions for creating a competitive EV industry in the Philippines. The strategy has five pillars: new industries, human resource development, micro, small, and medium enterprise development, innovation and entrepreneurship, and ease of doing business.
Participants to the EV forum.
According to AVID, Aldaba noted that the manufacturing and assembly of electric motor components like batteries are one of the 12 priority markets for development. Aldaba also emphasized the importance of encouraging EV adoption in the Philippines to cut emissions and promote sustainable mobility.
“Our policy is to embrace the new technology arising from Industry 4.0… We need to adapt and adopt these new technologies to improve our competitiveness to prepare for the stiff competition that our industries face,” Aldaba said.
After the keynote presentation, SPMJ and AVID members engaged Aldaba in an open forum, covering topics from battery tariffs to fast-tracking electronics manufacturing in the Philippines.
AVID said its first forum, held in May, featured experts from the academe and the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines discussing the future of the electric vehicle industry in the country.
Agudo said AVID’s fora would strengthen the partnership between industry, government and the media.
“Events like this are crucial to getting different sectors on the same page about auto policy. This won’t be the last time AVID teams up with government and the press to communicate important issues,” she said.
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