MANILA, Philippines - The US and other countries are eyeing various areas, including Mindanao for their next investment ventures, Malacañang said yesterday.
In a press briefing, Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said US Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker paid a courtesy call on President Aquino and brought with her a delegation of businessmen who wanted to see where they could invest.
“They are looking at potential areas of investment, like car manufacturing, energy, infrastructure in Mindanao, infrastructure on mass transit and also tourism,†Lacierda said.
When US President Barack Obama made a state visit last April, he announced that Pritzker and a delegation of American businessmen would come to Manila to look into the possibility of investing in the country.
Lacierda said the business climate in the country had also become more favorable following the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) by representatives of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the government.
“Now that we have come to a peaceful agreement with the MILF, many countries have been looking at Mindanao as a potential area for investment. We’ve seen other countries - Asean (Association of Southeast Nations) looking into Mindanao. And so, the United States is also one of the countries interested in looking into investments in Mindanao,†Lacierda said.
The CAB, signed last March 27, ended the decades-long conflict in Mindanao.
Pritzker, American chief executive officers, and the US-Asen Business Council came to talk with Philippine government officials and business leaders about how the country could sustain its economic growth.
Washington is also seeking to strengthen trade partnership with the Philippines.
Present during the meeting were Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla and Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Jr.
On the US side, Pritzker was joined by US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Global Markets Arun Kumar.