PH a thriving, critical partner in semiconductor industry - Blinken

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken sees the Philippines as a thriving partner in the semiconductor industry.

Blinken made the declaration following his tour of Amkor Technology Philippines as part of his visit to the country.

''We have companies that have been here, working here, investing here for many, many years.  And if you look at the industry, it’s truly extraordinary: some 3 million jobs here in the Philippines in assembling, testing, packaging; 20 percent of Filipino exports, 12 percent of its GDP,'' Blinken said.

''So the Philippines is a thriving partner and a critical partner – indeed, an increasingly critical partner – in the semiconductor supply chain, making sure that we have a strong, resilient supply chain.  And we’ve seen how critical that is.  We saw that during COVID.  We see it going forward,'' he added.

Blinken said the US would continue to look for ways to strengthen the partnership with the Philippines.

''I think you’ve already seen the extraordinary work that’s happening here in the Philippines, but I think the potential is even greater going forward, and it’s one that the United States continues to invest in and to focus on,'' the US diplomat said.

Earlier, President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. said the US support under its CHIPS Act would boost the Philippines' semiconductor sector, including its professionals.

Marcos said the Philippines is expected to produce around 128,000 semiconductor engineers and technicians who would meet the demand of the technology sector in the coming years.

Blinken visited the facility of ATP, a Philippine Economic Zone Authority-registered global leader in the Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) industry in Muntinlupa City on March 19.

As an ecozone investor, Amkor has  generated around 10,000 direct jobs for its Muntinlupa and Laguna high-tech manufacturing facilities.

“We are more than welcome to be hosting investments from the US EMS-SMS sectors and other industries," PEZA director general Theo Panga said.

Panga said PEZA’s track record showed that the agency was ready to support the semiconductor industry, "which remains on top of our priority industries, and it will remain the same under my watch.”

He said the roadmap presented by the semiconductor industry to further expand was clear.

“We are optimistic about our flourishing partnerships with American investors in various sectors most especially in the Electronic and Semiconductor Manufacturing Services, our bread and butter," Panga said.

"This collaboration is expected to enhance our nation's capabilities in assembly, packaging, and testing, and propel us into sophisticated integrated circuit design and, eventually, wafer fabrication," he added.

DG Panga sees these developments as the prelude to attracting bigger players in the industry, saying that

“PEZA looks to engage more semiconductor and chips manufacturers like Taiwan firm TSMC as it moves forward to diversify and elevate its footprint in the industry," Panga said. —RF/NB, GMA Integrated News