Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director General Lilia B. De Lima has announced her retirement as head of the country’s premier investment promotion agency after 21 years of service.
De Lima on June 29 informed her staff she was retiring to do what she had missed doing due to her full-time work at PEZA—to paint leisurely and tend to her garden.
She will stay on as PEZA DG until a new replacement is appointed.
In a press release, PEZA said De Lima told the agency’s employees that after 21 years, “PEZA is in its ripened, full grown, and matured stage to be able to ceaselessly pursue its mandated tasks to get and attract more investments, in order to create more employment opportunities for our people, and generate much needed exports revenues for the country with endless vigor and determination.”
De Lima assured them she will just be around for whatever assistance PEZA or any its staff may need from her.
She also expressed appreciation for their work, exhorting them to continue serving the people with honesty and integrity.
Under De Lima’s watch, PEZA grew from 16 economic zones in 1995 to 343 as of June 2016. The number of PEZA-registered enterprises also rose from 331 to 3,756.
From 1995 to 2015, total PEZA investments reached P3.157 trillion while total exports from its zones amounted to P606.974 billion. Total remittances to the government in the same period reached P16.621 billion versus the P145.498 million in remittances from 1969 to 1994 when it was still called the Export Processing Zone Authority.
From 1995 to 2015, PEZA’s direct employment was 1.264 million while direct and indirect employment reached 6.321 million.
World Bank-International Finance Corp. has cited PEZA as “a shining example of successful regulatory reform improving overall investment climate in the country.”
“Under PEZA, the Philippines has shown dramatic improvements in Investment Climate,” the financial and investment institution said.
