Arangkada Philippines Forum returns with the theme "FAST: Forging Ahead a Sustainable Tomorrow". Photo source: Arangkada Philippines website
Transition from consumption-driven growth into a high-value, resilient upper-middle income economy requires vital acceleration of economic reforms in the Philippines. This is why the Joint Foreign Chambers' (JFC) announcement comes at a crucial time. JFC rolls out the 2026 Arangkada Philippines Forum, underscoring the need to accelerate economic reforms to help strengthen the Philippines' investment climate and long-term competitiveness.
Through the theme "FAST: Forging Ahead a Sustainable Tomorrow," the forum will focus on advancing reforms across four pillars: building a future-ready economy, accelerating infrastructure and investment climate reforms, promoting sustainable and green growth, and strengthening trade, technology, and tourism competitiveness.
The JFC, composed of the American, Canadian, European, Japanese, and Korean chambers, together with PAMURI, represents over 3,000 member companies, with more than USD 100 billion in bilateral trade and around USD 30 billion in investments in the Philippines.
American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Executive Director Ebb Hinchliffe emphasized the continuity of the Arangkada reform agenda.
"When we launched the first Arangkada Forum in 2010, we identified seven key sectors and put forward hundreds of recommendations to encourage government action," said Hinchliffe.
"Sixteen years later, we continue to refine and expand our recommendations, focusing on sectors that can drive investment, create opportunities, and strengthen the Philippine economy. These reforms require strong government and private sector collaboration, and this forum remains a key platform for that dialogue."
Arangkada Philippines Project Director Atty. Marvin Diño said the 2026 forum is designed to be more solution-driven and focused on execution.
"This year's theme, FAST—Forging Ahead a Sustainable Tomorrow—recognizes that the Philippines is at a critical turning point, and the challenge is whether reforms are being implemented quickly enough to sustain growth and competitiveness," said Diño.
He said the FAST framework focuses on accelerating digital transformation, attracting foreign investment, strengthening energy reliability, and building long-term economic foundations.
"For 2026, we have redesigned the forum to move beyond discussion and toward execution, with each panel bringing together government and private sector leaders to identify actionable policy recommendations," he added.
Diño also highlighted priorities including digital governance, connectivity, cybersecurity, workforce readiness for AI, fast infrastructure rollout, improved logistics, and strong ease of doing business reforms.
He likewise cited energy security as a key pillar, noting the importance of positioning the Philippines in emerging global value chains.
"Ultimately, the forum is a platform to translate recommendations into policy action through meaningful dialogue between government and the private sector," said Diño.
Since 2012, the Arangkada Philippines Forum has been a premier public-private platform, convening around 700 delegates, including C-level executives, senior government officials, and industry leaders, to discuss competitiveness, investment, and structural reforms.
The initiative continues to advance its advocacy through the Arangkada Seven Big Winner Sectors—agribusiness, infrastructure, manufacturing, logistics, IT-BPM, tourism, and mining and minerals—key drivers of inclusive growth.
The 2026 Arangkada Philippines Forum will be held in October at the Marriott Grand Ballroom in Pasay City.