While the World Trade Organization (WTO) has recognized the Philippines’ efforts to facilitate foreign investments in some industries, it highlighted how the country failed to attract more investments for agriculture sector.

The WTO, which was cited by BusinessWorld, noted that foreign participation in sectors like agriculture, telecommunications, and public utilities remain “limited”.

This, as foreign direct investments (FDI) remain stunted by the lack of “good infrastructure, FDI restrictions and weak competition environment” especially in the transport and the housing sectors, the organization said.

Meanwhile, competition in the local setting remains “weak”. The WTO secretariat cited the country’s multiple and complex licensing and permit processes and the country’s non-adoption of international rules that will allow foreign participation in procurement — the Philippines being neither signatory nor observer to the Plurilateral Agreement on Government Procurement

The report, supplemented by a Philippine report in which the country noted of its economic progress from the last review in 2012, comes ahead of the WTO’s fifth six-year review of the Philippine trade policy landscape.