The Bohol Investment Promotion Center (BIPC) got around anew to gathering key players in the investment field. BIPC Head Maria Fe Dominise succeeded in drawing together Local Government Unit (LGU) officials and investment connoisseurs in a training session with the Board of Investments. With Gov. Edgar M. Chatto manning the ship which paved the way for Bohol’s successful ascent as one of the global attractions in the World Tourism Map, it is never a surprise when almost never a day ceases when an investor expresses his desire to put up business in the province. Dir. Dennis Miralles, BOI’s Domestic Marketing Department Head, and Luna Gracia Panesa-Ahmad of its Staff Training Division, shared important points on General Investment Policies and Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) guiding principles on foreign investments which LGUs could put into practice in luring in potential investors.

Basic components being considered before putting up investments like water, transportation, electricity, infrastructures and logistics were extensively discussed in a forum to avoid misunderstandings later on. LGU officials voiced out their respective concerns on certain issues which were conflicting in nature which quite helped in clearing the fog of doubt on their minds and which the BOI personnel were happy to iron out. The success of the Bohol One-Stop Shop (BOSS) after it was launched two years ago erased doubts that Bohol could make it in helping micro-enterprises thrive despite world crisis and the American depression. For the first two quarters of the current year, BOSS has already surpassed its targets for registered enterprises and investments generated.

Its record shows that investments generated for the first half of the year is almost equal to that of the annual investments generated in 2010. Total investments generated from micro and small enterprises have been posted at P759M from January to June 2011, which is almost equal to the annual investments generated in 2010 of P792M. These figures indicate that Boholanos are now getting entrepreneurial which signifies that the provincial government is supporting and providing opportunities for micro and small enterprises to thrive in its municipalities. This is a good equalizer in that economic opportunities are benefiting small-scale businesses in the rural areas, which likewise provide jobs and economic benefits in their respective localities. This is a manifestation of the increasing number of entrepreneurs in Bohol who are confident in its business enabling environment (BEE) and benefiting from the provincial government’s espousing of investor-friendly policies. The recently-approved SP Provincial Ordinance No. 2011-006, otherwise known as the Bohol BOSS Ordinance, strengthens the partnership between BOSS and the mandatory agencies like the DTI, PhilHealth, Pag-ibig and the SSS, and further enjoins other national agencies that provide business-related services to extend on-call technical personnel and establish hotlines or on-line quick action links.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would soon be providing regular frontline services at the Bohol BOSS and signed an agreement with the provincial government last July to set up an investor’s desk at its office. The regional directors of service line agencies have lauded the Province of Bohol as the first LGU to hire and assign personnel to act as the frontline service staff of mandatory agencies. This latest innovation by the Chatto-Lim Administration has proved effective as the number of walk-in clients have increased, a clear indication that quick and personalized service to clients is indeed a very big plus in luring in world-class potential investors. (jlv/EDCom)