2024 International Tax and Investment Conference

Speakers

Ralph Van Doorn

Senior Economist at World Bank Philippines

Ralph van Doorn is the senior country economist for the World Bank in the Philippines, focusingon the macroeconomy and supporting reforms to improve t...

John Peterson

Acting Head of Division at Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

Jonathan Pemberton

Independent Adviser at International Tax and Investment Center

Jonathan Leigh Pemberton is an independent adviser drawing on a strong background in taxadministration and policy development with considerable experi...

Hon. Romeo Lumagui, Jr.

Commissioner at Bureau of Internal Revenue

Ceferino Rodolfo

DTI Undersecretary for Industry Development and Trade Policy Group (IDTPG) and Vice-Chairman and BOI Managing Head at Board of Investments

He joined the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) as Assistant Secretary in 2013, after 19years in the Academe and Development Assistance-work. In ...

Tereso Panga

Director General of Philippine Economic Zone Authority

Tereso O. Panga, known in PEZA and industry circles as Theo and by the initials T.O.P., wasappointed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. as the first...

Atty. Ernesto Perez

Director General of Anti-Red Tape Authority

Atty. Ernesto V. Perez, CPA was appointed as the Director General of the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), an agency under the Office of the President c...

Atty. Javey Paul Francisco

Commissioner at Securities and Exchange Commission

Atty. Javey Paul Durban Francisco is a career public servant who hasbeen with the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for over20 years...

Mary Jean Pacheco

Undersecretary at Department of Trade and Industry

A highly motivated, dedicated Career Executive Service Officer (CESO) with significantcontribution and experience in public sector management, specifi...

Lito Villanueva

Chairman at Fintech Alliance Philippines

Lito Villanueva is the Philippines’ award-winning thought leader on digital transformation and inclusive digital finance at scale. As the Executive Vi...

Raymond Abrea

Founding Chairman and Chief Tax Advisor at Asian Consulting Group

Eric Caeg

Independent Director of Asian Consulting Group

Ramon Lopez

Independent Director of Asian Consulting Group

Jonathan Leigh Pemberton is an independent adviser drawing on a strong background in tax
administration and policy development with considerable experience of working in an
international environment. Since 2015, he has worked on tax policy and administration
projects sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF in Africa, Asia, South East Europe and
the Pacific. As a member of the UK Senior Civil Service for 14 years, he demonstrated an
ability to identify and implement major improvements to the tax system, employing a mix of
policy changes and operational improvements. Jonathan built on this experience at the OECD,
leading its work on tax administration for the benefit of both more advanced tax
administrations and developing countries that participate in the OECD’s global relations
programme. He holds a part time post at the Vienna University of Economics and Business’
Global Tax Policy Centre leading projects aimed at improving the practical operation of the
tax system, with a focus on developing countries. This research programme currently includes
an assessment of the impact of technology on tax administration and further refinement of the
cooperative compliance concept. Jonathan is also an international fellow of the Tax
Administration Research Centre at Exeter University. Jonathan is able to explain complex
issues in an accessible way to non-specialists, including Ministers and politicians, both at an
individual level and in groups and conferences. He has a highly collaborative style of working
that helps secure the best possible outcome, and a high level of acceptance of the final result.

He joined the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) as Assistant Secretary in 2013, after 19
years in the Academe and Development Assistance-work. In 2016, Usec. Perry was appointed
as Undersecretary and assumed leadership of the DTI's Industry Development and Trade Policy
Group. In this capacity, he oversaw the development and execution of the Philippine industrial
policy and the agenda for international trade negotiations and led the Philippine government's
bilateral trade and investment engagements with key partner economies.

Notable among Usec. Perry's accomplishments in the area of trade policy are successful
negotiation of the Philippines-European Free Trade Association Free Trade Agreement (PH-
EFTA FTA), the Philippines’ successful application to the EU GSP+ Program, and the conclusion of the Philippines-South Korea Free Trade Agreement (PH-ROK FTA). He also expanded the
Philippines’ network of official bilateral trade and investment cooperation agreements by
negotiating and implementing new Joint Economic Commissions (JECs) and high-level dialogue
mechanisms with Switzerland, Canada, Russia, Germany, Hungary, Czech Republic, Chile,
Turkey, Pakistan, Australia, South Korea, Israel, Papua New Guinea, and the United Kingdom.
He led the Philippines’ successful Trade Policy Review (TPR) Team that presented and defended
our trade policies before the WTO in March 2018; as well as headed the Philippine Delegation to
the WTO 12th Ministerial Conference in Geneva in June 2022.

Moreover, as Managing Head of the Board of Investments, Usec. Perry has secured the highest
investment registration in the Agency's 56-year history.

Tereso O. Panga, known in PEZA and industry circles as Theo and by the initials T.O.P., was
appointed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. as the first home-grown PEZA Director
General on 23 March 2023.

DG Theo started as a Planning Officer III in 1998 and worked his way up to become the Deputy
Director General for Policy and Planning in 2010, a position he held until his appointment as
Director General. Throughout his career in PEZA, DG Theo was responsible for policy and
planning, ecozone development, digital transformation, special projects and programs, and
other eco-industrial initiatives.

DG Theo earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Comparative Literature from UP Diliman in
1991 and his Master's degree in Industrial Relations from the same university in 2000. He also
completed an Executive Course on Urban, Industrial, and Environmental Management at the
National University of Singapore in 2009.

DG Theo is a 2015 Top 10 National Finalist at the annual Presidential Gawad Career Executive
Service Awards for best performing career government officials as administered by the Career
Executive Service Board. He also won the 2020 Best Policy Foresight Paper in the Executive
Course on Leadership, Innovation, Communication, and Knowledge Management (CLICK)
for third-level government officials as administered by the Development Academy of the
Philippines. Recently, he has been recognized as a Heroes’ Outstanding Leader in Economic
Development by Asia’s Modern Hero Awards Council (2023).

Atty. Ernesto V. Perez, CPA was appointed as the Director General of the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), an agency under the Office of the President created by the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018 (R.A. 11032), on 11 November 2022. He took his
oath of office on 14 November 2022 and assumed as head of the agency on the same day.

He became the first appointed official and Deputy Director General of the ARTA in December 2018,
spearheading the operationalization of the agency and its major programs and initiatives. DG Perez also assumed, in a concurrent capacity, as the agency’s OIC-Director General from December 18, 2018 to July 9, 2019 (until the appointment of former DG Jeremiah Belgica); and from 8 June 2022 until his appointment as Director General.

Prior to ARTA, he was the Assistant Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) – Consumer Protection Group. He served in a concurrent capacity as OIC Director of the Bureau of Philippine Standards where he promulgated the development of 108 new standards and revision of 151 Philippine National Standards aligned with the international standards of ISO/IEC and good regulatory practices of the World Trade Organization. He likewise served as Chairperson of the DTI-Steel Task Force where he led the investigation of the biggest steel importation in the country.

DG Perez has also been a Professional Lecturer for programs in Doctor and Master in Public
Administration at the Don Honorio Ventura State University in Pampanga since August 2021.
Moreover, he had been a litigation lawyer for almost thirty (30) years prior to joining government
service under the Duterte Administration.

DG Perez obtained his law degree from the Ateneo Law School in 1986 and was among the top 15 in the 1986 bar exams. He has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and majored in Accountancy in 1980 from the University of the Philippines – Visayas and passed the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Board examination in the same year.

He is an active Rotary Club member (Past President, Rotary Club of Makati Central, 2014-2015) and
served as the Philippines’ Coordinator of the Rotarian Action Group against Slavery, a non-government organization based in the United Kingdom. He serves as a volunteer Legal Consultant of the Manila-based OFW-ATOM (Anti-Slavery Movement).

Atty. Javey Paul Durban Francisco is a career public servant who has
been with the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for over
20 years. He rose from the ranks starting out as a Securities Counsel II in 2001,
promoted to Securities Counsel III in 2003, then Officer-in-charge in 2005.
Prior to his appointment as Commissioner by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte
on April 18, 2018, he was the SEC’s Director for its Davao Extension Office, a
position he has held since 2007. Said Office has jurisdiction over SEC
operations in Regions XI, XII and some parts of the Bangsamoro Autonomous
Region in Muslim Mindanao. Atty. Francisco was reappointed in 2022 for a 7
year term.

Atty. Francisco currently supervises the Company Registration and
Monitoring Department (CRMD) which is in-charge of the registration and
monitoring of corporations and partnerships. In such capacity, he is also in
the forefront of Ease of Doing Business efforts of the Commission. He also
supervises the Human Resource and Administration Department (HRAD) as
well as the Commission’s ten Extension Offices throughout the country.

His professional career as a lawyer began with a stint at the Angara
Abello Concepcion Regala and Cruz Law Offices or ACCRALaw. While at
ACCRA, he handled various corporate, labor, litigation as well as public
interest cases. He joined the government service in 2001 with a short stay at
the Office of the Ombudsman for Mindanao. In the same year, he transferred
to the SEC.

Atty. Francisco is a product of the Ateneo de Davao University where
he studied from elementary up to law school. He earned his Bachelor of Arts
major in Philosophy degree in 1991 and his law degree in 1995. He was
admitted to the Bar in 1996. In 2005, he earned his Master in Management
degree from the University of the Philippines in Mindanao. After completing
the Executive Leadership Program of the Career Executive Service Board, he
was granted Career Executive Service Eligibility in 2010.

His professional and civic affiliations include the Integrated Bar of the
Philippines-Davao City Chapter and the National Union of Career Executive
Service Officers or NUCESO. He was a director and treasurer of the
Association of Regional Executives of National Agencies in Region XI
(ARENA XI). He was also a former member of the board of trustees of the
Ateneo de Davao University Alumni Association, a life member of the
Mindanao Amateur Radio Association or MINDARA and is a Past Master of
Datu Bago Masonic Lodge No. 197 of the Free and Accepted Masons of the
The Philippines.

A highly motivated, dedicated Career Executive Service Officer (CESO) with significant
contribution and experience in public sector management, specifically, planning, monitoring &
evaluation, performance management, public administration, and public policy formulation. As a
CESO, USEC Pacheco is a 2015 CES VIP (Very Innovative Person 2015) awardee for introducing
innovation and institutionalizing good governance initiatives in the DTI. She was also a Gawad
CES nominee in 2017 and again, in year 2023. In 2021, she participated in the Lee Kuan Yew
Senior Fellowship in Singapore and became a Lee Kuan Yew Fellow. Lastly, in 2022, she received
two significant awards from her alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas. First is the Commerce
Outstanding Alumni 2022 by the College of Commerce Alumni Foundation (Cocafi) in the field of
government service as a graduate of the UST College of Commerce and Business Administration.
And second as one of the Most Distinguished Thomasian Alumna conferred by the UST Alumni
Association and nominated by PMT/CAT alumni association.

She was recently appointed as the Undersecretary for Regional Operations Group (ROG) which
is responsible for the field operations of the DTI in the regions and provinces. It also initiates
programs to ensure the efficient delivery of business development services, including the
formulation and implementation of policies, plans, and projects that can benefit micro, small, and
medium enterprises (MSMEs). As Undersecretary for ROG, she is also handling Negosyo Center,
Business Name Registration Division, Supply Chain and Logistics, Wholesale and Retail Trade
Office and Bureau of e-Commerce.

Lito Villanueva is the Philippines’ award-winning thought leader on digital transformation and inclusive digital finance at scale. As the Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation and Inclusion Officer at RCBC, he spearheaded RCBC's digital revolution, introducing groundbreaking and award-winning innovations. Among its recognitions include the Asiamoney’s Best Bank for Digital for four consecutive years (2020-2023), Gartner’s Eye for Innovation, and YouTube’s Challenger award, to name just a few.

Villanueva was recognized as a Circle of Excellence Awardee in the Asia CEO Global Filipino Executive of the Year and as the “Mr. FinTech of the Philippines” by NewsBiz Asia. He recently bagged triple LinkedIn awards as one of the Top 100 Filipinos on LinkedIn, Philippines’ Top 30 Leaders on LinkedIn, and Top Finance Leader under the LinkedIn Leadership Catalysts Awards 2023. He is likewise featured in prestigious lists like Seamless Asia's Top 50 Banking and Payments Leaders and Top 100 Fintech Leaders in Asia, among his over 70 regional and global accolades.

Lito Villanueva is also the Founding Chairman of Fintech Alliance.PH, Global Chairman of the Alliance of Digital Finance Associations, a trustee at the Philippine Blockchain Council, Asia FinTech Alliance, and an advisory board member at the ASEAN Innovation Business Platform. He has authored publications including the award-winning Inclusive Digital Finance Report and has a regular business column ‘Bytes’ in the Philippine Star.

Event Details

Agenda

February 27, 2024

11

12

2

2

4

Speakers

Ralph Van Doorn

John Peterson

Jonathan Pemberton

Hon. Romeo Lumagui, Jr.

Ceferino Rodolfo

Tereso Panga

Atty. Ernesto Perez

Atty. Javey Paul Francisco

Mary Jean Pacheco

Lito Villanueva

Raymond Abrea

Eric Caeg

Ramon Lopez

PROGRAM

Partner Organizations

Community

Connect with 96 people attending this event

Tickets

INTERNATIONAL TAX AND INVESTMENT CONFERENCE ACCESS PASS

School Delegates

Venue

Contact us

2024 International Tax and Investment Conference

Event Details

Agenda

February 27, 2024

11

12

2

2

4

Speakers

PROGRAM

Partner Organizations

Organizer

Partners

Partners

Partners

In Cooperation with

Media Partners

Community

Connect with 96 people attending this event

Tickets

INTERNATIONAL TAX AND INVESTMENT CONFERENCE ACCESS PASS

School Delegates

Venue

Contact us