Business summit acclaims Cebu's resiliency in crisis

CEBU, Philippines - The innovative approach of Cebuanos in terms of coping with the financial crisis was given highlight during the opening of the One Cebu Business Summit yesterday at the Cebu International Convention Center.

The first “One Cebu Business Summit” is an activity of the Provincial Government of Cebu and the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which is celebrating the Mandaue Business Month for the whole month of August.

Edgardo Lacson, the president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in his solidarity message that the country, and Cebu for that matter, definitely felt the pain of the financial crisis.

He said that different sectors were hit by the crisis but Cebuano’s creativeness in dealing with the problem and finding ways to cope with it has been an advantage.

As one of the important issues, Former National Economic and Development Authority Director General Dr. Cayetano Paderanga Jr. discussed the Global and Philippine Economic Outlook saying that though the country has been hit with the economic turmoil together with other countries, Paderanga said that the Philippines did not actually do that bad compared to other countries in the past years.

Paderanga discussed that different sectors were hit by the crisis and that countries reacted to it in different ways like the bailing out of banks, coming up with stimulus packages and having adjustment mechanisms as well as acknowledging the sectors that help amid the financial problem.

He said that people coming from different classes of the society have also made their own adjustments in their respective expenses to cope with the crisis like cutting back on consumption of goods and prioritizing the needs of the households.

He mentioned that for the Philippines and in Cebu specifically, the Business Process Outsourcing sector and the tourism industry are the two remaining sectors that drive the growth of the country, especially in Cebu.

The Tourism industry has reportedly grew to an 8.51 percent while despite reports of companies from various sectors laying of their employees during the financial instability, BPOs have not reported of any large retrenchments.

This growth in the tourism industry said Paderanga could also benefit other sectors such as the banks, construction companies, retail and trade, transportation and other services availed by the tourists like those in spas and wellness centers.

But aside from this, the remittances of the Overseas Filipino Workers have also helped since it reported to have a growth of 2.8 percent in the first few months of this year.    

He said that OFW remittances have been coming in and increasing and deployment in other countries as well has also been continuing.

Ambassador Donald Dee, the chairman emeritus of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry also said that the manufacturing sector, which was one of the reported industries badly hit of the crisis, could have a better comeback if US and Japan would hit a rebound since a big percent of the country’s export products goes to these countries.

Dee said that for their part in the PCCI, they are focusing in four key areas, the food security and agriculture, infrastructure, re-engineering of education and energy, in order to strengthen the economy and “put it back on track.”

He said that these key areas are their priority since it plays a vital role in the community and the growth of the country. Like for the food industry, Dee said that over one-third of the country’s labor force is in this sector.

He explained that they are supporting more stable policies that cover this sector as well as supporting the moratorium on the provision of agricultural land.