SCMAP president Pierre Carlo Curay believes the outlook for the logistics sector in the Philippines is “bullish” in 2021, as the country’s economy looks to bounce back from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and e-commerce takes a stronger hold.
In an interview which appeared on the 18 March issue of PortCalls, alongside other industry stakeholders, Curay – who represents XVC Logistics, and is also co-founder and CEO of InsightSCS – cites the “essential” role of the supply chain sector in almost all industries, as well as its resilience and adaptability in overcoming challenges, particularly those seen during the past twelve months.
He also believes the exponential growth of e-commerce, which we have seen in the past year, will further the sector’s development, particularly in digitalization. “Because of the pandemic, digitalization and e-commerce have been accelerated by 5-10 years, so basically welcome to 2031,” he said. “The industry players should move into digitalization just like what the banking sector did five years ago. Those banks who digitized were able to grow exponentially last year even through the pandemic but those who didn’t had more difficulty during that period.”
Challenges remaining for the sector, he believes, include the continued rise in COVID-19 cases, particularly with logistics workers being out in the field, as well as the rising cost of fuel.
In particular, Curay calls for a more collaborative approach to the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. “Our sector is very much supportive of this goal because we believe the faster this happens the earlier we can bounce back,” he said. “To add to that, more visibility and transparency are needed on vaccine distribution.”
For its part, SCMAP will continue collaborating with stakeholders in the public and private sectors, and also mount more public events and online training programs in response to the increased need for supply chain education and knowledge sharing.