DAVAO CITY — Tagum City in Davao del Norte province will be hosting the three-day Mindanao Business Conference (MinBizCon) 2018 on September 13-15 with high-level delegation expected to grace the event.
The Tagum City Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc (TCCCII) and co-host Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc (DCCCII) will mark the 27th year of holding the MinBizCon with focus on Tagum and Digos as areas of investments.
Speaking on Wednesday’s Habi at Kape at Abreeza Mall, TCCCII President Virgilio Agunod said the high-level line up of invited guests are President Rodrigo R. Duterte, ambassadors of Japan and the People’s Republic of China to the Philippines, Consul Generals of Malaysia and Indonesia and some members of the Cabinet.
Agunod said there will be more than 800 participants coming from the different cities and provinces of Mindanao.
"We are ready to house our visitors in Tagum City with a thousand available rooms in our 10 big hotels and several other small hotels and inns," he said.
As this year's host, Agunod said, “We would like our visitors to experience among others the bountiful harvest as it is timed during our Ugmad Festival in September.”
"This is the time when fruits and other agri products are abundant in our area," he added.
MinBizCon is an annual business event organized by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce (PCCI) and Industry as a venue for discussion on economic concerns and opportunities. This is also where the business sector in Mindanao can formulate policy actions for the development of Mindanao.
Themed "Building a Shared Future for Mindanao", MinBizCon 2018 will be divided into three parts — Building Peace, Building Progress and Building Sustainable Businesses.
The three sessions, he said, will discuss topics highlighting both the current opportunities and the unexplored potentials of Mindanao.
A forum on Agri-Business Support for Investment and Promotion in Regional Expo will be handled by the PCCI, Department of Agriculture and Department of Trade and Industry.
Other invited speakers are Department of Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez; the Peace by Piece - Peace Prospect in Mindanao by Presidential Peace Adviser Secretary Jesus Dureza; Bangsamoro Basic Law by Atty. Michael Mastura; Shift to Federal Form of Government by Mindanao Development Authority Chairman Secretary Abdul Khayr Alonto; Business Opportunities with China by Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua; Food Sufficiency Program by Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol; Tourism Initiatives for Mindanao by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat; and, the Build, Build, Build for Mindanao by Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno.
The Potentials of Economic Zones will be tackled by Ramon Segismundo, chairman, Hijo Resources Corporation; Building Solutions to the Build, Build, Build by John Stull, President and Chief Executive Officer and director of Lafarge Holcim Philippines, Inc.; Banana: A Model of Sustainable Agriculture by Alexander Valoria, President of Tagum Agricultural Development Corporation; Expanding Air Connectivity by Lance Gokongwei, the President of Cebu Pacific; Competing with the Big Players in the Oil Industry by Dennis Uy, President and Chief Executive Office of Phoenix Petroleum; Tagum City, the Most Competitive and Thriving City by Mayor Allan Rellon; and, Japan's Outlook in Mindanao by Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Koji Haneda.
Agunod said there is also a dialogue with Cabinet secretaries to be handled by Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco, Jr., and Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade. (PNA)
