ILOILO City Mayor Raisa Treñas said hosting the 49th Meeting of the High-Level Task Force on Asean Economic Integration (HLTF-EI) marked a significant milestone for the city, as it showcased its capability to host major international engagements and strengthened its position as an emerging hub for trade, services and innovation in Southeast Asia.
Treñas said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) engagement has already brought concrete benefits to the city, particularly in tourism and economic development initiatives.
“Hosting the 49th High-Level Task Force on Asean Economic Integration was a meaningful milestone for Iloilo City. It allowed us to showcase our capability to host major international engagements while positioning Iloilo as an emerging hub for trade, services, and innovation in Southeast Asia,” Treñas said.
She said Asean has extended capacity development trainings for the local tourism sector, particularly in Iloilo City, providing immediate and tangible gains for industry stakeholders.
“We appreciate that Asean engagement brings immediate and tangible benefits. Asean has already offered capacity development trainings for our tourism sector, especially here in Iloilo City,” she said.
Treñas added that under the Asean Economic Community framework, Iloilo City will be linked with Agoda to help strengthen the digital presence of its tourism-related enterprises.
“Under the Asean Economic Community, they will also link us with the Agoda team to train our tourism content companies on how to effectively package and list their products and services on global online platforms, helping them reach a wider international market,” she said.
The mayor also highlighted Iloilo City’s growing information technology and business process management (IT-BPM) sector, citing its English-proficient workforce as a competitive advantage in attracting regional investments.
“Currently, Iloilo City has a growing IT-BPM sector and a strong, English-proficient workforce, which makes us well-positioned to benefit from these regional reforms,” Treñas said.
However, she noted that the city is expecting more opportunities in the business process outsourcing industry, including potential data center investments that could further boost the local economy.
“However, we still expect more opportunities for BPO expansion and even potential data center investments,” she added.
Treñas said the city government looks forward to sustained regional cooperation as Asean advances its goal of deeper economic integration among member states.
“Moving forward, we anticipate stronger regional partnerships, increased investments, better opportunities for our professionals, and improved competitiveness for Iloilo City as Asean continues to grow as an integrated economic community,” she said.
The hosting of the 49th HLTF-EI meeting placed Iloilo City at the center of high-level discussions on regional economic reforms, trade facilitation and integration efforts within Southeast Asia.
City officials said the engagement not only elevated Iloilo’s profile in the region but also opened pathways for collaboration in tourism, digital services and investment promotion.
Local industry stakeholders are expected to benefit from enhanced exposure to global platforms, particularly in tourism and online service markets, as the city strengthens its linkages with Asean-led initiatives.
City officials said they will continue to align local economic programs with regional reforms to maximize opportunities arising from Asean cooperation and integration efforts. (Leo Solinap)