THE Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm) announced that investment in the region remain resilient and growing, posting a total of P3.65 billion in the first semester of 2017, despite the fighting in Marawi City that broke out on May 23.
Lawyer Ishak Mastura, chairperson and managing head of Armm’s Regional Board of Investments (RBOI), said the investment prospects of the region continue to show signs of resilience and dynamism because the government has effectively contained the crisis in Marawi City.
The office of Mastura reported that the first half’s figures are higher by almost 74 percent compared with 2016’s total registration of P2.1 billion.
Mastura said they have so far registered three major projects this year.
The first of the three major projects is the P32-million fish processing and cold storage project of Abing Seafoods and Cold Storage located in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, that addresses the needs of fisher folks in the province to process, store, and preserve their seafood catch.
Second is the P33.5-million cargo shipping project of J. Sayang Shipping Lines Inc., which is also based in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, for inter-island trade, as well as for cross-border shipping with Sabah, Malaysia.
Third, the RBOI has approved the P3-billion telecommunications carrier project of TierOne Communications International Inc. (TierOne) for the region.
Mastura said they expect more investments coming in during the second half of this year.
These will included banana plantation investments in Maguindanao; port services project worth P100 million; a bulk water treatment project worth around P200 million; and a cacao plantation project that will pour in P1 billion.
The Armm-RBOI provides fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to investors. (SunStar Philippines)