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As a result of the election of President Rodrigo Duterte in mid-2016, decentralisation and rural development have been put in the spotlight for the national agenda. Prospective investors, government planners and citizens are increasingly encouraged to look at provincial sites as destinations for investment, development and migration. The three fastest-growing regions outside of Metro Manila in 2015 were Bicol, Western Visayas and Calabarzon. Decentralisation, however, remains a slow-moving process, as the dominance of Metro Manila as the country’s economic, political and cultural nucleus has only grown stronger over the years, having been the leading magnet for investors, factories and migrants, often at the expense of previously more buoyant regions further afield. This chapter contains interviews with Hermilando Mandanas, Governor, Province of Batangas; Alfredo Marañon Jr, Governor, Province of Negros Occidental; and Antonio Rafael del Rosario, Governor, Province of Davao del Norte.

After five straight years of robust macroeconomic expansion, the Philippines ranks as one of the best-performing economies in South-east Asia. With rapidly rising domestic consumption, soaring foreign direct investment and a growing services sector, the country is set to record world-leading growth rates in 2017. Although weakening global and regional demand have weighed on exports, and the agriculture sector remains subdued following years of volatile and problematic weather, prudential fiscal management, falling public debt and legal reforms aimed at improving the investment climate have left the country positioned to tap global debt markets and attract new investment. This chapter contains interviews with Carlos G Dominguez III, Secretary, Department of Finance; Shinichi Kitaoka, President, Japan International Cooperation Agency; Bernie H Liu, Chairman and CEO, Golden ABC; and Helen Y Dee, Chairperson, RCBC.

This chapter contains a breakdown of the most recent legal reforms and changes in Tunisia, including an overview of the new finance law. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Ghazi Meziou, Associate Lawyer, Meziou Knani & Khlif.

This chapter contains an overview of Tunisia’s taxation system and examines the country’s efforts to encourage growth via prudent fiscal policy, including through a new investment framework, which offers improved incentives and guarantees. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Moncef Boussannouga Zammouri, Managing Partner, KPMG.

Health care has been a national priority for the Tunisian government since the country gained independence from France in 1956. A focus of continued investment, the health care sector has since seen the development of a nationwide network of public hospitals and health centres, with the country quickly becoming a model in North Africa. The combination of private sector investment and public sector reforms positions the sector for continued growth. In recent years, private health care has taken the lead in terms of investment, with the construction of a number of new health clinics. This development is set to help the country to solidify its position as a regional medical tourism destination. In the decades following independence, Tunisia was among the countries with the highest investment in education in the region. This enabled it to introduce important legal changes, such as compulsory basic education, which led to high enrolment and literacy rates. However, in the face of deteriorating quality standards and high unemployment rates among young graduates, authorities are now looking to overhaul the education and vocational training system with a series of upcoming reform measures that could significantly reshape the face of Tunisia’s education system in the coming years. This chapter contains an interview with Tahar Ben Lakhdar, Co-founder and CEO, Esprit.