PHL urged to fix airports to lure foreign retirees

Before the Philippines could capture the multibillion-dollar business of hosting foreign retirees, the government should fix the country’s airports first, among other things, the head of a retirement and healthcare group said Tuesday. Henry Schumacher, president of the Retirement and Healthcare Coalition Inc., said the Philippines has been losing out to other countries in attracting foreign retirees, who could provide vast investment opportunities in the country. Schumacher called attention to the latest ratings by a popular travel website showing the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the prime gateway to the Philippines, as the fifth worst airport in the world. Called “The Guide to Sleeping in Airports," the website also describes NAIA as the worst in Asia. “We urge the Aquino administration to address critical issues that include facilitating seamless travel and stay of foreign retirees in the country," Schumacher said at the First Philippine Retirement and Healthcare Summit in Makati City. ‘Tropical paradise’ Rene Fritschi, managing director of the RPF-Hospitality Consulting in Bangkok, meanwhile called the Philippines a “tropical paradise for permanent residence," holding potential to become Southeast Asia’s leading haven for healthcare and retirement. Foreigners, in fact, keep the Philippines on top of their minds when searching the summer-related keywords on Google.com, the search-engine giant revealed on Monday. Fritschi however said the Philippines – a largely Filipino- and English-speaking country – should build a multilingual community to management retirement homes effectively. Schumacher also cited problems like the lack of ease in the entry and exit of foreign retirees, and the absence of a holistic retirement village. Also the president emeritus of the European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, Schumacher said the RHC has been discussing “critical" retirement and healthcare issues with the government. More retirement, healthcare PPPs In his keynote speech during the summit, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa relayed the Aquino administration’s hope that its public-private partnership (PPP) initiative will attract investors to build retirement and healthcare services in the Philippines. " Our drive for genuine national development and progress is one that we cannot undertake alone. We know that we need the private sector at our side to bring in capital and generate jobs," Ochoa said. The executive secretary also made the assurance that the government will remain stable and consistent with regard to its policies, and will also lay a level playing field. In an economic briefing on Monday, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Cayetano Paderanga said the government also plans to lower the costs of doing business in the Philippines, which continue to derail the entry of investments in the country. -- PE/OMG, GMA News