The 2023-2028 Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP) 2023-2028, to be unveiled today, June 15, by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., has set an ambitious exports growth target of $240.5 billion over the next six years, driven by the country’s eight major export sectors.  
The new PEDP showed a starting exports goal of $126.8 billion this year, growing to $143.4 billion in 2024, and $163.6 billion in 2025. The country’s exports are targeted to accelerate to $186.7 billion in 2026 and $212.1 billion in 2027 before hitting its final goal of $240.5 billion in 2028. The plan also showed that eight sectors – electronics; IT-BPM; minerals; agriculture and agri-based exports; transport products; wearables, fashion accessories and travel goods; chemicals; and home furnishings – will drive the country’s exports as would account for 88.5 percent or $213 billion of total exports by 2028. The electronics and electrical exports will remain the biggest contributor, reaching $106 .4 billion level in 2028 from $53.76 billion this year 2023, while the IT-BPM (IT-business process management) would contribute $36.1 billion this year to $63.2 billion on the sixth year of the program. The minerals sector is expected to chip in $7.7 on the first year of the plan and $19.4 billion by 2028. The agriculture and agri-based exports could reach $5.1 billion in 2023, reaching up to $8.9 billion in 2028. Export of transport products is targeted to start with $4.2 billion this year and $6.8 billion in 2028. Wearables, fashion accessories and travel goods are expected to add $2.7 billion and accelerate to $4.5 billion on the sixth year of the plan. Chemicals will start with $1.7 billion and end with $2.4 billion, while the home furnishings are seen to export $1.1 billion this year and improve to $1.4 billion by 2028. Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., president of the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (PhilExport), noted that the PEDP 2023-2028 is focused and support to industries are stratified, meaning there are different strategic support to each of the four priority industry clusters, which are composed of the eight major sectoral export groups. These four priority industry clusters are industrial, manufacturing, and transportation (IMT); technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT); and health and life sciences (HLS); and modern basic needs and resilient economy (MBNRE). Government support and intervention will depend on the specific needs of each cluster. In particular, PhilExport has put emphasis on the fourth cluster – MBNRE – because this is where the high value products with high local content will come in. Most important, he said, this is where the micro, small and medium enterprises play. “The three other clusters are big industries already,” he pointed out. “MBNRE is a catch-all, that is where our best suit items come in from MSMEs, mostly in agriculture manufacturing and processing. This is also where our creative economy belongs and our design products,” he added. “We consider MBNRE very high local content so its support will be stratified and we will determine that,” he added. Of the four clusters, Ortiz-Luis said the MBNRE may not be a big part of the country’s entire exports portfolio, but this is where “our players are proven to be battle scarred.” This sector has also remained resilient even during challenging times. “So, the private sector will be very supportive of the plan,” said Ortiz-Luis, noting that the plan was approved by the Export Development Council. “What is also good is that the plan was approved in the year that it is support to begin and the purview is six years,” said Ortiz-Luis.