25 November 2014 - A 7-person Swiss business delegation organized by the Philippine Embassy in Berne, in partnership with Swiss-Asian Chamber of Commerce (SACC) and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Geneva, visited the Philippines from November 12 to16 to explore the diverse business opportunities in the Philippines.
This is the first official business delegation from Switzerland to visit the Philippines in seven years.
The business delegation was composed of Swiss companies and business associations representing various vital sectors of Switzerland’s industries such as infrastructure, environmental and recycling services, healthcare, investment, consulting, and business process outsourcing.
Philippine Ambassador to Switzerland Leslie J. Baja, accompanied the delegation in Manila, Laguna and in Cebu. “The Swiss companies’ visit aims to showcase opportunities the Philippines can offer them. The visit shows their strong and serious interests in the Philippines,” he said.
On November 13, the Swiss delegation first called on Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Ponciano Manalo. The delegation members expressed to Undersecretary Manalo their strong interests in business process outsourcing, pharmaceuticals, metal recycling, and finance development.
“The visit of Swiss businessmen led by the Swiss Asian Chamber of Commerce is timely and serves as a concrete follow-through of the recently concluded 1st meeting of the Philippines-Switzerland Joint Economic Commission last July,” said Undersecretary Manalo.
On the same day, the delegation received a comprehensive briefing from the DTI’s Board of Investments (BOI) and Export Marketing Bureau (EMB). The BOI organized the trade and investment forum for the delegation, while the EMB lined up several Philippine companies for the business matching session held in the afternoon of the same day.
During the forum and business matching session, the delegation was likewise able to engage with representatives from the Information Technology and Business Processing Association of the Philippines (IT-BAP), the Philippine-Swiss Business Council (PSBC), and the Swiss Embassy in Manila.
Testimonials by SGS Philippines and Nestlé Philippines, both successful Swiss companies in the Philippines, were likewise given to further convince the delegation of the benefits of doing business in the country.
On November 14, the delegation went to the Philippine economic zone in Calamba, Laguna for a company visit to Franke Philippines, a Swiss company which manufactures kitchens systems.
The following day in Cebu, on November 15, the business delegation was briefed by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) on the advantages and incentives of setting up operations in the country’s many economic zones.
On the same day, the delegation also visited Philippine companies based in Cebu, namely Interior Crafts of the Islands, Inc. of Mr. Kenneth Cobonpue Asia, a multi-awarded furniture designer and manufacturer, and Profoods International Corp., a fruit and juice processing plant which exports dried mangoes and other dried fruits, respectively.
The Swiss business delegation was headed by SACC President and CEO, Dr. Urs Lustenberger.
Other members of the Swiss business delegation include officers of the Swiss-Asian Chamber of Commerce, the Swiss Import Promotion Program, business expansion consultation company Agility 3 GmbH, healthcare marketing company Parazelsus Ltd., investment firm Touchstone Ventures, environmental/waste recycling company WRC International and Lustenberger Attorneys at Law.
Switzerland and the Philippines enjoy strong economic relations with over 60 Swiss companies present in the Philippines employing around 15,000 Filipinos.
Ambassador Baja seeks to further expand economic relations between the Philippines and Switzerland, based on President Aquino’s platform of good and effective governance which has created an environment that is conducive to doing business in the country. END