THE United States is keen to fast-track Pax Silica-related initiatives in the Philippines, a Cabinet official said on Friday.
Finance Secretary Frederick Go, who met with US Ambassador to the Philippines Lee Lipton a day earlier, said the envoy “expressed that the Pax Silica project is on top of the priority list of the American side.”
“He’s very keen to make things move fast, which is good news,” he added.
“If we’re going to do this, we might as well do it as fast as possible so that we can provide jobs and be a significant player in the technology of the future... Both sides are very excited to get this moving along, because I really believe this could be a generational type of project.”
A planned 1,618-hectare artificial intelligence hub in New Clark City in Tarlac is expected to attract substantial investments and generate “hundreds and thousands of jobs.”
The Philippines became the 13th signatory to the Pax Silica initiative in April, joining a US-led coalition aimed at securing supply chains for semiconductors, artificial intelligence, critical minerals and advanced manufacturing.
Other countries that have joined include Australia, India, Japan, South Korea, the European Union, United Kingdom, Argentina, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.
