THE Quezon City government said its main attractions to investors are available land and the size of its consumer base and work force, with the city also having largely digitized its permit processes.
Quezon City Mayor Maria Josefina G. Belmonte said in a speech at the Quezon City Investors Summit 2022 last week that “Quezon City is… one-fourth of the land of Metro Manila… Size means space. The space in Quezon City is 16,112 hectares, which at present still has a lot of room for development. There is still much more space to move around in Quezon City relative to the majority of cities in the National Capital Region (NCR),” Ms. Belmonte said.
Ms. Belmonte added “Quezon City’s size contributes considerably to its competitive advantage. Quezon City’s 3.1 million residents also mean 3.1 million customers for your business. Of these, two-thirds are at least 18 years old. That’s a workforce of potentially 2.1 million people. This workforce is also a young workforce with an average age of 28 years.”
“We made a conscious and deliberate effort to win back the trust of people in the government, so that they could see the government as an enabler, rather than a hindrance. With trust, relationships can be built with relationships, cooperation, and progress,” she added.
Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual called Quezon City the “richest city” in the country in terms of locally generated revenue.
“We invite top-notch businesses to consider setting up their businesses here or if they have existing businesses, to expand. We invite them to build high-impact infrastructure projects and contribute to the city’s economic development, social services delivery, good governance, and sustainable growth,” Mr. Pascual said.
In a statement, the Quezon City government said that over 200 investors, business leaders, business associations, chambers of commerce, and foreign delegates participated in the Investors Summit 2022, including representatives from New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Ireland, France, Denmark, Israel, the US, Germany, and the UK.
“As Quezon City (strives) to be the top business destination in the country, applying for business permits and licenses has been made easier through the development of QCBizEasy under the city’s QC E-Services platform. The local government has automated and digitized 95% of the city’s services,” it said. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave