21 April 2014 - Twenty-three high-level French businessmen representing twenty-one companies flew to Manila from April 7 to 8 for a two-day investment mission organized by the Mouvement des enterprises de France (MEDEF), the French Embassy in Manila, and the Philippine Embassy in Paris.
A third of the participating companies were from the CAC 40 or the French equivalent of the Dow Jones.
Most of the companies are from the infrastructure and energy sectors. The company representatives listened intently as Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya and Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center Executive Director Cosette Canilao enumerated fifteen big-ticket projects up for bidding.
The French businessmen were welcomed by an equally high-level Philippine delegation composed of Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Gregory Domingo, DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Cesar Purisima, Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Ramon Jimenez; Senator Panfilo Lacson, Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director-General Lilia De Lima, and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Director-General William Hotchkiss III.
Members of the Philippines-France Business Club also met with the French businessmen. SGV founding partner Mr. Washington Sycip made a special appearance to launch SGV’s “Invest in the Philippines” guide in French.
The French business delegation included companies in aeronautics (Airbus); airport design and construction (Aéroports de Paris, Vinci Airports); energy (Alstom, Cofely, GDF Suez, Green Lighthouse, Total, Tractebel); financial services (Crédit Agricole); infrastructure, transport, and public works (Citelum, Egis, Freyssinet, Matiėre, SNC Lavalin, Systra, Vossloh Cogifer); quality standards (Bureau Veritas, Socotec); shipbuilding (Ocea); and spatial (Collecte Localisation Satellite).
Some of the companies are already present in the country, such as Airbus, Alstom, Bureau Veritas, Cofely, Freyssinet, Matiėre, Socotec, Systra, and Total. These companies are interested in further expanding their businesses in the country.
GDF Suez and Tractebel will open offices in the Philippines within the year, while some are looking to bid for future projects in the country.
Total trade between the Philippines and France reached almost 2 Billion USD in 2013, up by 55% from 2012. Last year, France jumped three notches to become the country’s 14th largest trading partner. With the French gaining greater awareness of the Philippines as an emerging economy in the most dynamic region in the world, these figures can be expected to increase even further. END