Xiamen, China – Philippine Ambassador to China Jose Santiago L. Sta. Romana headed a delegation of officials from the Consulate General in Xiamen, trade and investments, agriculture, and tourism to participate in the “Forum on Philippines-China Post-Pandemic Economic Cooperation” and related activities held on 13-14 May 2021 in Xiamen.

The activities were co-organized by the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) – Guangzhou, the CITEM Business Representative in Xiamen, and Renyi Holding Group. The participation of the Ambassador and the officials from trade and investments, agriculture and tourism is among the major activities of the Embassy this year focused on promoting Chinese investments in the Philippines.

Participants during the forum included potential investors from Xiamen and other parts of Fujian province. Both Xiamen and Fujian have particularly strong historical, cultural and economic links with the Philippines, considering that a significant part of the Filipino-Chinese community trace their lineage to forebears from these locales.

On 13 May 2021, Ambassador Sta. Romana attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the inauguration of the Renyi Holding Group headquarters in Haixi Financial Center in Xiamen. The company has been actively involved in facilitating investment promotions activities and has been keen on expanding its business presence in the Philippines.

On 14 May, the Ambassador led the Philippine officials in the day-long Investment Forum held at the Hyatt Regency Xiamen Wuyuanwan. The forum drew attendees from the business communities in Xiamen and other parts of Fujian province, local government officials, as well as senior representatives of chambers of commerce and other industry associations. In his remarks at the event, the Ambassador highlighted the strength and durability of Philippines-China relations by noting, “…the bonds between the two countries have withstood many challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, yet the overall state of the bilateral relationship remains resilient and positive.”

Ambassador Sta. Romana joins Renyi Holding Group executives and guests during the inauguration of their new headquarters on 13 May 2021.

In the Forum’s afternoon session, Commercial Counsellor Glenn G. Peñaranda presented a briefing on Philippine investment policies, while Senior Trade Representative John Paul Iñigo briefed forum participants on opportunities in the Philippine infrastructure industry. Other presenters included Agricultural Counsellor Ana Abejuela who presented on agricultural opportunities, Commercial Vice Consul Mario Tani who provided a briefing on Start-up opportunities, and Tourism Counsellor Erwin Balane who presented on prevailing opportunities in Philippine tourism. Later in the program, Philippine officials engaged interested Chinese business executives in one-on-one consultations regarding possible business partnerships, investment arrangements and other relevant details.

The Ambassador delivering his remarks during the "Forum on Philippines-China Post-Pandemic Economic Cooperation"  held on 14 May 2021 at Hyatt Regency Xiamen Wuyuanwan.

The following day, the Ambassador spent time with members of the Filipino community in Xiamen in a dialogue, and later a salo-salo. The event, which was organized by the Philippine Consulate General in Xiamen, was also an opportunity for the Xiamen Filcom to learn more about livelihood opportunities as the visiting officials provided briefings on the “Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabuhayan (TNK)” program. END

The Ambassador speaks before members of the FilCom gathered at Philippine Consulate General - Xiamen on 15 May 2021. During the dialogue and salo-salo, the visiting officials also presented livelihood opportunities under the "Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabuhayan (TNK)" program.