CEBU, Philippines- The Cebu Business Month in June this year is set to make local businesses more responsive to global challenges affecting the business community.
Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Ma. Teresa Chan said businesses have to be more open to opportunities and challenges brought by the economic integration in Southeast Asia and other global factors.
“[This is a] platform to establish network of local and global connections to stimulate a transnational business community in Cebu and the neighboring islands,” Chan said on Friday during the launching of CBM 2015, the flagship program of CCCI.
She noted that the conferences, expositions, contests and other activities happening this June aim to sustain the business growth momentum of Cebu, one of the fastest growing urban areas in the Philippines.
The CCCI said: “It has the primary purpose of enhancing business and effecting wide-scale economic development especially among the small and medium scale enterprises.”
The chamber added the business month serves as an “avenue for local/national and global key players in promoting their trade and tourism related products, services and technology.”
Glocalization
This year’s business month highlights the theme of “glocalization” which can mean integrating local solutions for global challenges.
CBM 2015 Chairman Francis Dy explained the month-long event will focus on the inherent local talents and capacity of Cebu entrepreneurs and how they can capitalize on global opportunities which can potentially help the local economy.
“Glocalization refers to the idea of thinking global but acting local,” Dy said.
The word simply means integrating modern business practices and technologies in addressing local problems.
He said local businessmen need “to network to ASEAN neighbors to create business alliances and joint ventures” amid the seamless ASEAN economy and tight foreign competition.
CBM wants to focus on the issues faced by various industries such as the business process outsourcing, tourism, creative sector, entrepreneurship and information and communications technology.
Its first major event is the ICT & BPM Conference and Expo on June 3-4 in Cebu City Marriott Hotel. This aims to discuss the prospects and challenges of IT and BPM and link local and global players in the industry.
An entrepreneurship conference and a technology expo in the same hotel are also set on June 18-20. This event pushes the capabilities of local firms and their resources as a way to attract partnership with foreign companies.
On June 25, the 4th Southeast Asian Creative Cities Network Forum at the City Sports Club will highlight the development of the creative industry as a means to generate growth, income and employment.
Other events this June include tourism forum, travel fair, jobs fair, blogging summit, tourism adventure challenge, among others.
CBM is an annual event of CCCI that enables stakeholders to promote Cebu business and explore investment and travel opportunities in Cebu. (FREEMAN)