08 July 2015 - Delegates of the 4th Filipino-American Youth Leadership Program (FYLPRO) spent their second day with an immersion into the local business environment, meeting with private sector representatives in sessions designed and hosted by the Makati Business Club (MBC), American Chamber of Commerce-Philippines (AmCham), and Go Negosyo.
A Business/Economic Briefing was conducted in the morning with the participation of former Finance Secretary Roberto F. de Ocampo; former Finance Undersecretary and tax lawyer Emmanuel P. Bonoan; and Bantay.PH’s co-founder and head Happy Feraren.
Mr. Bonoan, in discussing the state of the economy, shared, “Overall, the Philippines has some sound economic fundamentals. We have an expanding market, adherence to the rule of law, and there is the general satisfaction with this government.”
“The most important thing that this administration has done is it set the bar for Filipino’s expectations about good governance and the way the economy is run. Filipinos now expect a high level of commitment from its government and this makes businessmen more optimistic to be in the Philippines and to do more business in the Philippines,” he added.
Following the briefing was a lively Q&A in which the delegates sought the speakers’ views on varied topics from youth empowerment to labor issues to health care in the Philippines.
Ty Cullen,a member of the Hawaii House of Representatives, was interested to know about the involvement of people and government, saying, “It is important to look at labor issues in the context of international business and I’m interested to know how the Philippines can leverage and protect its most valuable resource in the global economy.”
At a luncheon co-hosted by MBC and AmCham, MBC Chairman Ramon R. Del Rosario, Jr., shared with the delegates, “for 2016 and beyond, the agenda must be how to institutionalize reforms that have been started and to sustain the upward momentum that the country is currently experiencing. This is major challenge for the Philippines and I hope you can come up with innovative ideas that can help in the process of institutionalizing our gains.”
“We hope you will take advantage of this dialogue to forge meaningful connections that will help bring your nation building ideas to reality,” he added.
Mr. del Rosario is also the President and Chief Executive Officer of PHINMA Corporation which is one of the corporate sponsors of this year’s FYLPRO.
In the afternoon, the delegates had a discussion with Go Negosyo and local entrepreneurs Ryan Sanchez, Patch Dulay, Micray Gonzales, Mark Ruiz, and Stephen Co.
Jap Uminga, who moderated the discussion, told the delegates that Go Negosyo empowers people to move out of poverty through entrepreneurship.” He added, “It connects successful entrepreneurs to small, micro and young entrepreneurs hoping to build businesses and it brings the stories of successful entrepreneurs down to the people.”
The delegates, who hail from backgrounds ranging from government service to technology and the arts, expressed appreciation for the day’s activities, as these allowed them to personally interact with individuals and groups involved in social entrepreneurship and civic engagement.
Day 2 was capped with a reception tendered by US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip S. Goldberg, who also hosted the FYLPRO delegation of the previous year.
In his message, Ambassador Goldberg said of FYLPRO, “the core of our relationship is our People to People and you represent that. Ambassador Cuisia’s idea of bringing together young Filipino-Americans to build a new relationship is a great idea.”
Philippine Ambassador to the United States and FYLPRO founder Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. thanked the business sector representatives and the US Ambassador for continuing to support the leadership program.
Philippine Airlines, Ayala Corporation, Chevron Holdings, Chevron Philippines, Chevron Malampaya, Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Philamlife, and SGV and Co. join PHINMA as the corporate sponsors of the 4th FYLPRO. END