President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has established a comprehensive national policy to expand the Philippines’ critical minerals industry and align government efforts across the mining sector under Executive Order No. 122.
The presidential decree outlines strategic guidelines for the discovery, extraction, processing, and application of vital mineral resources. It aims to draw foreign and local capital while integrating advanced processing technologies to maximize the economic yield of local resources.
Rooted in the principle of state ownership over mineral lands, the policy mandates that resource management adhere strictly to environmental safeguards and social protections for local communities.
Key provisions of Executive Order No. 122 include:
- Resource Exploration: Authorizes the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), through the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), to launch a national mapping initiative to identify high-potential deposits and declare strategic mineral reserves.
- Downstream Processing: Directs focus toward converting raw materials into inputs for high-value manufacturing, energy storage, renewable tech, and electronics.
- Investment Support: Mandates fiscal incentives, infrastructure development, and public-private partnership (PPP) frameworks to support industrial-scale processing.
- Streamlined Permitting: Establishes a digital one-stop shop to enable concurrent permit processing, shortening approval timelines while maintaining compliance standards.
- Institutional Restructuring: Reorganizes the Mining Industry Coordinating Council (MICC)—now co-headed by the DENR and the Department of Finance—to unify policy direction, resolve regulatory bottlenecks, and pursue international partnerships.