1 March 2016 - The Philippine Embassy in Dili participated in the first Global Economic Forum of the Comunidade dos Paises de Lingua Portuguesa (CPLP) countries which was held in Dili from February 25 to 27.

Timor L'este is the chairman of the CPLP until the end of 2016. The Forum was participated in by government officials and businessmen from 20 different countries,  namely: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe, Timor-Leste, Spain, Japan, China, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Businesses from all over CPLP, ASEAN, and other Pacific Regions converged in Dili and showcased their products and services, and explored potential partnership. The Forum also developed scheduled Business to Business (B2B) meetings for the participants.

Mr. Michael Angelo Genato, the Managing Director of Global Medical Technologies, and Ms. Shirley J. Songco, Assistant Manager of Relationship Management and Business Development Department of The Medical City represented the Philippine business delegation and met with other businessmen from other CPLP countries.

Through its participation, the Embassy took the opportunity to inform the participants about the Philippines and the investment opportunities in the country. 

Mr. Reynold D. Banda, Officer in-Charge of the Embassy, provided a 20-minute audio-visual presentation on Philippine medical tourism and Invest Philippines.

The Forum was attended by several businessmen from CPLP countries and Spain. Ms. Aurelia Da Silva, wife of the Vice President of the Timor-Leste Parliament, was the special guest during the Philippine presentation.

After the presentation, Mr. Banda was approached by participants from Brazil, who said that, "by watching the promotional tourism video, we learned that the Philippines has a lot to offer in terms of tourism.” The presentation brought a positive outlook of the country. END