MARTIAL LAW has not stopped investors and business people from all over the island to participate in the biggest gathering of key players in the business sector.
The ongoing fighting in Marawi City that caused the displacement of thousands of families and the destruction of properties and lives did not deter delegates from attending the 26th Mindanao Business Conference (Minbizcon) held at the Xavier Sports and Country Club here, Sept. 7-9.
Businesses were initially affected by the Marawi crisis, causing tourism and hotel occupancy to dip. But business has since bounced back as the influx of evacuees led to an increase in the purchase of goods for their needs, said Robert Pizzaro, the incumbent president of the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation, Inc.
Pizzaro, who’s also the executive chairman of A Brown Company Inc., said Minbizcon drew at least a thousand business leaders not just from Mindanao but from other areas in the country as well.
In a previous interview, Minbizcon chairman Ruben Vegafria said they were amazed of the sheer number of business owners and executives who expressed their interest in joining the event.
This year’s theme is “Emerging Opportunities, One Mindanao” and it aims to set the stage for discussing innovative strategies towards building a strong and more resilient economy for the island and the whole country.
Resolutions adopted from the various discussions of business-related issues which form part of the policy agenda that will be submitted by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry to President Rodrigo Duterte at the 43rd Philippine Business Conference in October.
The Minbizcon has also become a venue for Filipino inventors to showcase their innovations to potential investors, said Alfonso Alamban, regional director of the Depart of Science and Technology (DOST).
In line with this, DOST has put on display various inventions in time for the Regional Technology Transfer Day which became part of the events of the Minbizcon.
“This year, we are featuring almost 30 technologies, but there are a lot of more innovations that the DOST is refining and assisting every day. Not only are these technologies a triumph of [Filipino] innovators, there are also a boon to the Filipino society at large, because these inventions are locally relevant and appropriate for our needs,” said Alamban in his message to Minbizcon attendees.
In an interview, Alamban said a few investors have taken interest in some of the inventions which were showcased at Minbizcon and formalization of agreement between the DOST and business owners are underway.