Manila, Philippines — The recent declaration that the Philippines is “open for business and partnerships,” particularly for Canadian investors, raises a fundamental question: What kinds of investments is the government inviting, on what terms, and for whose benefit?
This question is especially important because the government identifies mining, including nickel extraction and mineral processing, as one of the sectors with significant economic growth potential. The expansion of the mining industry must always be pursued with caution and with clear safeguards to ensure that economic opportunities do not come at the expense of ecosystems, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and future generations.
The Philippines should continue to welcome investments that create decent jobs, promote innovation, and contribute to national development. But the country cannot afford investments that weaken environmental safeguards, disregard community rights, or treat ecological destruction as an acceptable cost of doing business.
Our courts have described the President as the “chief architect” of Philippine foreign policy. As with any architect, the responsibility is not simply to build partnerships, but to ensure that the blueprint serves the people who must ultimately live with its consequences.
When decisions are driven primarily by the pursuit of investment, while the voices of affected communities, Indigenous Peoples, local governments, environmental defenders, scientists, and ordinary Filipinos are sidelined, it is the people who ultimately bear the environmental and social costs.
As Ms. Yolanda Esguerra, National Coordinator of the Philippine Misereor Partnership Inc. (PMPI), explains:
“An architect who refuses to listen to the people who will use the building is bound to design one that eventually fails. Governance is no different. Foreign policy cannot be built around the preferences of a powerful few while those who bear the environmental and social costs are treated as afterthoughts.”
We have seen this pattern before. Communities become divided over large-scale mining projects. Indigenous Peoples face long struggles to defend their ancestral domains. Environmental defenders experience harassment and intimidation. Forests are cleared, watersheds are degraded, and ecosystems that took centuries to evolve are permanently altered in pursuit of short-term economic gains.
These outcomes are not inevitable. They reflect the choices our leaders make and the standards they choose to uphold.
Economic growth cannot be measured solely by the value of investment pledges or agreements signed. It must also be measured by whether our forests remain standing, our rivers remain clean, our seas continue to sustain our fisherfolk, and our ecologically critical and climate-vulnerable areas are protected. It must also be measured by whether communities are free to defend their lands, livelihoods, and future without fear.
Investments must serve the public good. The Philippines should welcome investments that respect human rights, comply with environmental laws, uphold the rights of Indigenous Peoples, and recognize that nature is not merely a resource to be exploited, but the foundation of all life, upon which our economy, our food security, and the well-being of future generations depend.
“Economic growth or productivity alone does not define a genuine and lasting national development. It must go hand in hand with ensuring ecological integrity – respect for nature’s rights, community rights, and the well-being of all human and non-human beings. As we pursue partnerships and investments, we must also ensure that they strengthen, rather than diminish, the ecosystems and communities upon which our nation’s future depends,” Esguerra said.
Philippine Misereor Partnership Inc. (PMPI)
