Visit of Former President Arroyo Portends Intensified PH Interaction with Shanghai; Yangtze Delta Area
Top photos: (L) Alibaba Chairman/CEO Zhang welcomes FPGMA and delegation; (R) Alibaba Chair Zhang with FPGMA and other officials. Below photos: (L) Lunch hosted by Shanghai FAO; FPGMA visits Site of 1st CPC National Congress; FAO DDG Fu welcomes FPGMA. (Shanghai PCG photos)
SHANGHAI, 05 April – Senior Deputy Speaker and former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo became the highest-ranking Philippine official to visit Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta area since China’s lifting of travel restrictions, as she led Filipino youths on a tour of Shanghai and Hangzhou on 01 and 02 April 2023.
The former President was in the region as part of a larger itinerary in China on the invitation of the Beijing-based China Public Diplomacy Association (CPDA). The Filipino youths were selected by the Association for Philippines-China Understanding (APCU), a Philippine NGO established in 1974 to promote people-to-people diplomacy and friendship with China. APCU Chairman Raul L. Lambino accompanied the group.
Arriving in Shanghai from Changsha, Hunan Province, on April 01, the former President and her delegation were welcomed by Foreign Affairs Office Deputy Director General Fu Jihong and Philippine Consul General Josel F. Ignacio.
The following day saw them visit St. Ignatius Cathedral, the Shanghai Tower, and the Memorial to the 1st National Congress of the Communist Party of China. A lunch hosted by DDG Fu, during which the Philippines’ cooperation with China’s financial capital was extensively discussed, capped the Shanghai leg.
Accompanied by officials of the Consulate General and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center-Shanghai the group traveled by rail to Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, where they were received by Mr. Xing Huidong, Executive Vice President of the Zhejiang Provincial People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (ZPPAFFC), on behalf of the Provincial Government.
The highlight of the leg was the visit to e-commerce giant Alibaba Group’s sprawling headquarters, also known as the “Xixi campus”. No less than Alibaba Chairman and CEO (Daniel) Zhang Yong, with Lazada Group CEO James Z. Dong, welcomed and toured the former President as part of a briefing on Alibaba’s history, current operations, and future plans.
Both Alibaba and Lazada expressed excitement over the dynamism of the Philippines’ e-commerce market. Chairman Zhang proudly cited Philippine products now “unlocking the Chinese market” via Alibaba platforms, such as Sunflower crackers Sunnies Face cosmetics, and Kojie San skin lightening products.
The delegation departed for Beijing that same evening, after a dinner hosted by Mr. Xing.
The former President first visited Shanghai in 1977, in an eye-opening sojourn just before Deng Xiaoping ushered in the transformative Reform and Opening Up policy that gave birth to China, the global economic power. Her current trip, taking place against the backdrop of a far modern and globally linked China, was organized roughly following her 1977 itinerary, for the benefit of participating Filipino youths. END
Right photo: CG Ignacio and FAO DDG Fu welcome former President Arroyo on her arrival in Shanghai. Left photo: Alibaba Chief Zhang showcases PH products topping Taobao sales. (Shanghai PCG photos)
Alibaba Chair Zhang, former President Arroyo, CG Ignacio, APCU Chairman Lambino, PTIC Chief Tani and Lazada Chief Dong with accompanying officials and youth delegation. (Shanghai PCG photo)
For more information, visit http://shanghaipcg.dfa.gov.ph/.