Marcos accompanied by 114 businessmen in Japan trip

TOKYO — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is accompanied by over 100 businessmen on his five-day official visit in Japan in a bid to fetch investments to boost the country's economy and generate jobs.

“I am accompanied on this trip by an equally diverse group of 114 businessmen whose activities span the whole gamut of Japan-centric business opportunities —manufacturing, construction, real estate, retail, food service, trading, telecommunications, aviation, recruitment, mining, and agribusiness,” Marcos said in his speech during a business luncheon event here.

Thirty-five investment deals on infrastructure, energy, manufacturing, and healthcare have been sealed between the Philippine and Japanese governments and various companies on Friday.

“On top of forging new connections in business, our delegates are also here on a mission to listen, to observe, to learn, and then act on opportunities and new knowledge. I hope that the synergies that we establish with our Japanese partners today will continue to grow,” Marcos said.

“Hopefully beyond profit and commerce, these partnerships will now extend to lifelong friendships which will promote and will encourage the deepening and the strengthening of the ties between Japan and the Philippines,” the President said.

In a statement, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said that Marcos’ development agenda received support from several premier Japanese business organizations that expressed readiness to help the administration’s development agenda, among which were representatives from Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), SUMITOMO CHEMICAL Co., Ltd., Sompo Holdings, Inc., and Marubeni Corporation.

Masakazu Tokura, Keidanren chairman and SUMITOMO CHEMICAL Co., Ltd. board chairman, said the dramatically changing situation globally has pushed the Philippines and Japan’s ties to be “more important than ever.”

"We are very truly honored to have this opportunity to meet with all of you. The Philippines and Japan share a fundamental value of freedom and democracy,” said Tokura.

The President said Japan’s assistance has become "central to our policy, for the recovery and the transformation of the Philippine economy.”

“I think it is the same experience that you have had in Japan as in the Philippines where the [MSMEs] have had a very, very rough time during the lockdowns and many have gone out of business, many have tried their best to stay and support their employees,” Marcos said.

“Nonetheless, we have made all the efforts that we can possibly do so as to bolster and make a more active... to bring into the new economy even the MSMEs... to include them in our digitalization, to include them in the policy changes that we feel we had to make so to encourage again MSMEs,” he added.—AOL, GMA Integrated News