PRA HIGHLIGHTS RP AS RETIREMENT HAVEN IN LOS ANGELES AND Nevada 

26 January 2007 – The Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) conducted sales road shows in Las Vegas and Los Angeles on 18 to 21 January in a bid to entice Americans and Filipino-Americans to retire and invest in the Philippines. 

In a report submitted to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Maria Hellen M. Barber, Acting Head of Post of the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles, stated that the PRA headed by Chairman Edgardo Aglipay apprised the California and Nevada communities of developments in the Philippine retirement industry. 

In his presentation, Chairman Aglipay highlighted the findings of the Healthcare Coalition Institute, which predicted that a “retiree tsunami” in rapidly aging populations of the developed countries would create great opportunities for retirement havens such as the Philippines to offer excellent alternatives for the retirees.  

“With the present trend in many countries towards early retirement at age 45, the figures could go up to almost 1 billion retirees by 2015,” Aglipay said. “The Philippines has the capacity to support 1 to 3 million expatriate retirees remitting between US$ 18 billion to $54 billion annually.” 

The retirement industry in the Philippines is described by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as a “flagship program of the Philippine Government for the 21^st century and beyond.” The PRA, whose party had visited the Fil-Am community in San Francisco on 17 January 2007, is tasked to fully develop the potentials of this sunshine industry. 

The PRA targets one percent of annual retirees from six major countries, namely, US, Europe, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China, who are estimated to number 326 million this year and 425 million by 2015.  

Mr. Aglipay noted that the Philippines has competitive advantage over the top retirement destinations around the world, notably Spain, Southern California and Thailand. “The Philippines is more favorable in almost all areas such as climate, natural beauty, quality of service, safety, and proximity to high quality health facilities.”  

The presentations were well received by the attendees, particularly balikbayans who would like to spend their retirement years with family members and friends in the Philippines.  

PRA’s priority development areas are Baguio, Subic Bay, Clark Field, Manila, Tagaytay, Cebu, Bohol and Davao.  

The Philippine government is improving the infrastructure for the retirement industry. “I highly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity by investing in retirement facilities in the Philippines,” Aglipay said Further details on investment opportunities and/or possible retirement in the Philippines are available at www.pra.gov.ph and through email at inquiry@pra.gov.ph. END

/jay

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