RESTRICTIONS on foreign investments in mass media, advertising and education are already obsolete, according to a former socioeconomic planning secretary.

In a recent presentation, former National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Director General Cielito F. Habito said these restrictions have prevented the country from taking advantage of many opportunities to create jobs.

These jobs could come in through new foreign direct investments (FDI), as well as higher skills and learning brought about by top-notch foreign institutions.

“One of the reasons for our continuing difficulty in attracting FDI [are the] persistent restrictions on foreign participation in many key sectors of the economy,” Habito said.

“We have missed out on a lot of opportunities for creating even more millions of jobs for our compatriots,but we still have too tight restrictions…enshrined in our Constitution and our laws,” he added.

Habito said fears that foreign institutions would “brainwash” Filipinos through mass media and advertising have been mooted by the fact that millions of Filipinos have cable television and can access information through the Internet.

In terms of education, Habito said, foreign restrictions have prevented the country from joining its Asean neighbors in being the Asian locations of top-notch universities.

He said Malaysia and Singapore now have branches of the prestigious US-based Yale University and Johns Hopkins University.

“Actually, in the 1990s, Harvard University almost came here to set up a Harvard Medical School Training Hospital except, again, our laws apparently prevented even that,” Habito said.

In his presentation, Habito noted that no foreign ownership is allowed in mass media, except recording, while limited foreign ownership was imposed on private radio networks where foreigners are only allowed 20-percent ownership; advertising agencies, 30 percent; and education, 40 percent.

Waiting for FINL

Meanwhile, the Neda is still waiting for the President’s signing of the revised Foreign Investment Negative List (FINL), which aims to address some of these concerns.

In July Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said the President has yet to approve the FINL, which the Neda submitted earlier this year.

However, he gave assurances the updated FINL will be signed soon.

Apart from contractors, the FINL will also ease foreign restrictions on private recruitment, whether for local or overseas employment; teaching in the higher education levels; retail trade enterprises; and domestic market enterprises.

Pernia said the updated FINL will make it possible for a 100 percent-owned telecom-munications firm to operate in the country.

The NEDA chief said that while some laws need to be amended to make these changes possible, there are already a number of bills filed in Congress that will support the FINL.

The Neda is tasked to review and revise the country’s Regular Foreign Investment Negative List (RFINL), which contains restrictions on foreign investments and the practice of professions based on the constitution and Philippine laws.

The RFINL contains investment areas/activities where foreign equity participation is limited by mandate of the Constitution and specific laws. It also consists of investment areas/activities where foreign equity participation is limited for reasons of defense, security, risk to public health and morals, and protection of small- and medium-sized domestic market enterprises.

The amendment of the list is headed by the Neda Secretariat, as provided for under Section 8 of RA 7042, or the Foreign Investments Act of 1991. The latter states that amendments may be made upon the recommendation of the secretary of national defense or the secretary of health, or the secretary of education, endorsed by the Neda, approved by the President, and promulgated by a Presidential Proclamation.