In whatever form, red tape is bane to economic development. It must be dismantled whatever it takes by all government agencies and private stakeholders with a sense of urgency. Bureaucratic inefficiencies or delays in government processes hinder the Philippines’ potential to become an even more progressive country. Promoting bureaucratic efficiency is at the core of the Marcos Administration’s 8-Point Socio-Economic Agenda to achieve the desired upper-middle-status by 2025. With the effective utilization of the country’s vast natural resources, our economic status could be better than what we have today if we remain focused towards breaking barriers to sustain economic growth along the way.
The Anti-Red Tape Authority, or ‘ARTA’, was established for the purpose of promoting ease of doing business to fast track a more effective service delivery. Considering red tape’s capacity to jeopardize promising outcomes, it is a two-word horror story to all Filipinos whether they know or not know what it truly is. Red tape in simple terms simply equate to ‘waste of time,’ ‘unnecessary requirements,’ ‘annoying delays,’ or ‘corruption,’
Established in 2018, ARTA has focused on eradicating red tape through capacitating government agencies to implement process improvement and at the same time, run after fixers through closer public-private collaboration.
For 2025, ARTA is at the forefront of implementing those reform initiatives developed over the years on priority sectors such as the electronic Business One Stop Shop (eBOSS) for the local government units (LGUs), Telecommunications, Logistics, Socialized Housing, Renewable Energy, Responsible Mining, Semiconductor, Health, Maritime/Shipbuilding, and the Water sectors.
ARTA has been continuously spearheading streamlining initiatives in these sectors. Program NEHEMIA or the National Effort for Harmonization of Efficient Measures in Inter-related Agencies which is the authority’s flagship program for inter-agency streamlining is in support of the strategies that are laid out in the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028 which serves as the country’s overall blueprint for development planning.
One of the priority initiatives of ARTA in the Logistics and Transportation sector is the Unified Logistics Pass or the ULP. The long-term goal of the ULP is to have this unified quick-response or QR Code recognized in all ports, economic zones, and LGUs while simultaneously eliminating the burden of the truckers in securing multiple stickers or passes in different ports, ecozones, and LGUs. If all unnecessary manual steps are removed, the automated application process is implemented, and a platform for digital payments is established, the steps required to process applications will be reduced from 209 to 24, and the processing time will drop from 271 days to just 35 days.
The logistics industry in the Philippines currently contributes about 4% to 6% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product or GDP. The sector is experiencing growth driven by e-commerce expansion, infrastructure development, and a rise in digital transformation among logistics providers. This upward trend is forecasted to continue, with the market expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 8.2% through 2027, reaching an estimated market value of PHP 1.16 trillion by that year. The Shipbuilding sector is one of our new priority sectors under Program NEHEMIA. Also, according to Lacerta, the country’s maritime industry contributes at least 4% of the country’s GDP in 2024, making it a crucial contributor to the economy’s growth. With the continuous relevance of cargo transport across oceans and the easy availability of markets all over the world, the Shipbuilding sector calls for innovative transformation tailor-fit to the Philippines’ capacity to cater to the growing demand for this service.
Philippines is among the emerging shipbuilding nations worldwide, acquiring a dominant status in the maritime industry since 2005—executing great potential and opportunities for the country to become a world-class shipbuilder.
In President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s speech during the signing of the shipbuilding deal of Cerberus and HD Hyundai in Subic, Pampanga, the Philippines was the 7th largest shipbuilder in the world in 2022 and 2023, contributing almost 400,000 gross tons of newly built sea and ocean-going vessels. The country has established its position as the largest source of competent and able seafarers in the world, “and the next logical step is to ensure that the ships run by Filipinos can also be made by Filipinos.”
Recently, ARTA has facilitated an Innovation Mentoring workshop for the Health, Maritime/Shipbuilding, and Water sectors in coordination with the New Zealand government and Creative HQ. The workshop is aimed at capacity building; helping agencies think outside the usual and conventional. Through innovation, the transactions, regulations, and services of the participating government agencies are redesigned with efficiency in service delivery at its core.
In the coming months, ARTA will gather stakeholders to share the solutions developed in this workshop and find ways to improve shipbuilding regulations. By working together, we can identify gaps, simplify processes, and ensure that regulations support industry growth. This will help create a more efficient and business-friendly environment.
But beyond policy improvements, the real drivers of change are the people behind them. While red tape cannot be eliminated through a single workshop or two, the upskilled workers become catalysts for change—innovators and champions of bureaucratic efficiency within their agencies.
By embedding innovation mentors within agencies, we cultivate leaders who drive efficiency across the government. This, in turn, fuels the kind of systemic change that the Filipino people rightfully deserve. Our hope is that this initiative sparks a ripple effect—one that grows far beyond what we imagined.
As deep-rooted as red tape goes is how ARTA is willing to dive into—even beyond. 2025 is currently at the stage of norming in its Ease of Doing Business Roadmap, where greater cooperation among government agencies and stakeholders to support the EODB initiatives will be sought and taken advantage of until it is fully practiced by 2028.
ARTA is not just here to envision and upskill—we are here to take action, driving reforms with urgency, precision, and a commitment to real, lasting change.
