Saturday, September 08, 2007 BIMP-Eaga execs to discuss SME development in meeting
OFFICIALS of the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-Eaga) will meet in Zamboanga City on September 11 and 12 to discuss matters concerning the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the sub-region.
The 7th BIMP-Eaga SMED Cluster Meeting will talk about the implications of the relevant concerns to the SMED Cluster, taking off from the directives and agreements of the senior officials.
These topics will include Business Development Services and the possible mainstreaming of the Human Resource Development Working Group in the SMED Cluster and economic corridors concept.
Officials from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) will likewise attend the meeting to give updates on the implementation of the proposed economic corridors concept, a proposed mechanism to promote domestic and cross-border trade, investment, and export-oriented production.
Moreover, the meeting will talk about the various SMED Cluster initiatives and deliverables as contained in the SMED Cluster Action Plan, in preparation for the mid-term review of the BIMP-Eaga Roadmap for Development.
Trade and Industry director and SMED Cluster chair Nazrullah Manzur said the two-day conference will be a venue for the sub-region's stakeholders to continuously craft initiatives to further improve the economic positioning of the four member-countries.
"Whatever the results of this meeting will be very crucial to our common goal of uplifting the condition of our SMEs," he said.
The SMED Cluster will also provide some inputs which will be necessary in preparation for the 15th Senior Officials' Meeting, 12th Ministers' Meeting, and BIMP-Eaga Investment Conference (iCon) this October in Davao City.
