It's CamSur for 22nd Ad Congress

MANILA, Philippines –  It’s final: fast-rising local tourism destination Camarines Sur has been picked to host this year’s Philippine Advertising Congress to be held on Nov. 16 to 19.

Following months of thorough deliberations on possible venues for this year’s Ad Congress, organizers have picked Camsur as the venue for the ad industry’s much-awaited biennial meet.

The event, organized by the Advertising Board of the Philippines, brings together the country’s top business, advertising and media firms. It was last held at the Subic Bay Freeport in November 2009.

“We’re very excited about Camsur because the Ad Congress has never been held there,” said Sandy Prieto Romualdez, chairman of the 22nd Ad Congress and president of Philippine Daily Inquirer. “It is in synergy with the theme for this year’s Ad Congress and will help spur local tourism, an advocacy the industry is promoting,” Romualdez added.

The theme of the 22nd Ad Congress is “The Game-Changing Generation.”

With its novel appeal, uniqueness and bright tourism potentials, Camsur proved to be the best choice for the event. Another major factor considered by the organizers in picking Camsur was the readiness of local government support, owing to Camsur Gov. Luis Raymund “Lray” Villafuerte’s spirited and highly successful drive to promote tourism in the area.

It is largely to Gov. Villafuerte’s credit that Camsur tourism has grown by leaps and bounds over the last few years. The province’s crown jewel, Camsur Watersports Complex (CWC) in Pili City, has hosted top international sporting events such as the Iron Man 70.3 and a slew of international wakeboarding competitions. Nearby Caramoan Island, on the other hand, served as the site of a location shoot for the reality TV show Survivor France series in 2008, and has been on a roll wowing local and foreign tourists.

Also cited as reasons behind the choice of Camsur were its accessibility, infrastructure, accommodations, affordability, safety and security.

In an effort to infuse professionalism and efficiency in the conduct of the four-day event, the organizing committee is set to adopt a new electronic system for the reservation of room accommodations in Camsur.

“The objective is to rid the booking of ‘palakasan’, so we would like to ask everyone for their support and cooperation as we introduce this real-time online reservations on a first-come, first-served basis,” said Blen Fernando, vice-president for marketing of Alaska Milk Corp. and head of the Ad Congress administration committee.

“Kindly register online rather than go directly to the hotel as this will allow us to guarantee best rates and a smooth registration process,” she added. The website for registration will be set up by April 2011.

With Sandy Prieto-Romualdez in this mission is a formidable team composed of BlueBlade Technologies’ Hans Roxas Chua, vice chair; J. Romero’s Andre Kahn and Fat Lion’s Jose Sy, oversight committee; Alaska Milk’s Blen Fernando, administrative; McDonald’s Margot Torres, programs; DM9’s Merlee Jayme, creatives; Dentsu’s Nonna Nanagas, finance; Starcom’s Joanna Mojica, ways and means; Philippine STAR’s Miguel Belmonte, PR and publicity; Manila Bulletin’s Emil Yap III, external affairs; Inquirer’s Connie Kalagayan, internal affairs; Business Mirror’s Anton Cabangon and Ricky Alegre, special events; and Hinge Inquirer’s Doris Bermudez, secretariat.

The 22nd Ad Congress will be officially launched to the public in the first week of April 2011.