The imminent passage into law of the proposed “Tatak Pinoy” (Proudly Filipino) Act will help the Philippines grow economically and be known in the global market, Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara said on Tuesday, November 7.

Angara made the pronouncement after the Senate approved Senate Bill No. 2426, on third and final reading on Monday evening, November 6. Twenty-three (23) senators voted in favor of the bill, no negative votes, and no abstention. 

“The Philippines has a huge potential for growth that has yet to be untapped. With the Tatak Pinoy bill, we are confident that we will be able to help our industries in expanding their reach in the world market, provide a significant boost to our economy, and provide our people with greater opportunities to earn more,” Angara said. 

The Senate Committee on Finance chief said the measure started out as an idea on how to make the Philippine economy stronger by enabling businesses and industries to produce better, more unique and sophisticated goods and services.

The “Tatak Pinoy” bill, which also seeks the creation of a Tatak Pinoy Council that will oversee the implementation of the proposed law, will also strengthen the partnership between the government and the private sector. 

“With better coordination between the two sides, government will be able to implement more projects that will benefit the private sector—be it infrastructure or other initiatives such as those that will improve the skills and capabilities of our workforce,” the senator said.

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. had earlier declared the bill one of his priority measures. Accordingly, the Tatak Pinoy Act is consistent with the goal of the Marcos administration to bring about structural transformation in line with its eight-point socioeconomic agenda.

The measure is also consistent with the Philippine Export Development Plan 2023-2028, insofar as making locally-produced goods more globally competitive and expanding the level of exports to other countries.

“With Tatak Pinoy, the goal is to improve the competitiveness of our industries so that they can grow faster and produce more better paying jobs for our people,” the lawmaker further said. 

According to Angara, Tatak Pinoy was inspired by the Atlas of Economic Complexity developed by Dr. Ricardo Hausmann of Harvard University and Cesar Hidalgo. Hausman is now with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is now with the University of Toulouse in France.

The Atlas, which analyzes why certain economies perform better than others, earlier ranked the Philippines 33rd among 128 countries. It postulates that countries that are more economically complex develop and grow at a faster pace.

Angara urged the House of Representatives to pass its own version of the “Tatak Pinoy” bill to expedite its enactment into law.

“Nanawagan kami sa aming mga kasamahan sa Kamara na aksyunan na nila agad ang panukala.  Agahan na po sana natin ang pag-pasa ng batas na ito, para makapagsimula na ang pagpaplano at trabaho para makapag-sanib-pwersa ang gobyerno at ang pribadong sektor para tuluungan ang mga industriyang Tatak Pinoy (We call on our colleagues in the House to act on the proposal immediately. Let's pass this law as soon as possible, so that the planning and work can begin so that the government and the private sector can join forces to help Pinoy Brand industries),” he said.

“Ang pagsasabatas ng Tatak Pinoy bill ay isang malinaw na hakbang para pabilisin pa lalo ang ating muling pag-angat at pagtamo sa bagong Pilipinas na ating pinapangarap (The enactment of the Tatak Pinoy bill is a clear step to speed up our recovery and achieve the new Philippines we dream of),” the senator emphasized.