THE Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) will hold trade missions to both China and Taiwan this year.
“Cebu is one of China’s trading partners. It is now time to aggressively tap the China market even more,” CCCI past president Joe Ng said in yesterday’s general membership meeting.
The chamber will hold a trade mission to at least three cities of China: Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing. The trade mission is tentatively scheduled on April 13 to 27.
While the economy is slowly recovering from the international economic crunch, the trade mission will draw more investments to Cebu, said Ng.
Last year, the chamber sent trade missions to Macau, Israel, Taiwan and India. Consul Samuel Chioson, CCCI president, said the trade missions also strengthened the business community of Cebu and paved the way for new market opportunities.
As for Taiwan, Ng said the market needs to be explored because Taiwan is “a very important trading partner of the Philippines” given the number of overseas Filipino workers based there.
“We will also seal a sisterhood agreement with the Kaohsiung Chamber of Commerce, the second largest chamber in Taiwan,” Ng said.
“These linkages with other foreign countries will help Cebu position itself in the global market.”
Aside from the trade missions set for this year, CCCI also launched new projects this year, including its business center, which member-companies can use for conferences and meetings.
The chamber also launched the Chamber Update, which provides information on business, and Coffee Break with CCCI, an interactive forum among CCCI members with media and guests.
Among the other developments of the chamber this year, Chioson said, is the 19th Visayas Area Business Conference on June 25. “This is an additional activity during the Cebu Business Month (CBM), which the chamber will host this year,” Chioson said. About 14 chambers from the Visayas will be represented.
Aside from the business conference, Felix Taguiam, chairman of CBM 2010, said the CBM this year will focus on a “green” theme.
Among the activities lined up are a Green Concert and Trails of Success, which will feature 30 entrepreneurs who maintain environmentally sustainable practices in their businesses.