NAVOTAS Mayor John Rey Tiangco echoed earlier appeals to the National Government to consider lifting the moratorium on the establishment of economic zones based in Metro Manila, in order to spur more economic activity and growth for the entire country.

In June 2019, the Duterte Administration issued Administrative Order 18 (AO18), an order for 'Accelerating rural progress through robust development of special economic zones in the countryside,' which effectively imposed a ban on applications for Ecozones in the Metro until the Office of the President sees fit to lift the moratorium.