The Philippines has been named the top “Digital Riser” in East Asia and the Pacific by the European Center for Digital Competitiveness (ECDC).

According to the report published, the Digital Riser recognition was influenced by the ‘Innovate Start-up Act’ lighthouse initiative that was passed in 2019 to strengthen and promote the innovation coming from startups and their distinct ecosystem.

Furthermore, the report stated, “Further beneficial initiatives include the introduction of start-up visas and public-private partnership initiatives, such as the ‘Start-up Venture Fund’ in 2019, which matched investments from investors in local start-ups under certain conditions,” as a published quote from the report.

In April last year, the 16^th President of the Republic of the Philippines signed the Innovative Riser Act in which the act introduced several programs that lined up to help support the establishment, development and success framework of innovative, tech-entrepreneurship oriented startups in the Philippines. The program also supports the friendly assistance on startup visas for owners, employees, and investors as part of the Start-up Assistance Program 2019-2023; prioritizing and expediting promising startups and enablers for their applications with state services; and directing education institutions to integrate entrepreneurship in their curricula as well as providing grants and incentives to academic institutions.

Basing on the region, the Philippines joins its neighbors Thailand,  Indonesia, China, Cambodia, Japan, Mongolia, Brunei, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, Australia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Laos, and New Zealand as the top digital countries in Asia and the Pacific.

Through the report group, the top digital risers are France for G7 countries, Saudi Arabia for G20 countries and Middle East and North Africa region, Armenia in Eurasia, Bulgaria in Europe and North America, Dominican Republic in Latin America and the Caribbean, Sri Lanka in South Asia, and Seychelles in Sub-Saharan Africa.