PhilExport

I was lucky to be invited to attend the banquet held at the World Trade Center in celebration of the 20th anniversary of PhilExport, the non-governmental organization that has been at the forefront of export promotion.  Established in 1992 at the urging of then President Fidel V. Ramos, the confederation has since been a good case study of Public-Private cooperation.  The Department of Trade and Industry spearheads the government's participation and coordinates with various PhilExport chapters throughout the archipelago, in order to assist in worldwide marketing.  Naturally, the close coordination with the DTI enables exporters to provide feedback for the mode of government assistance needed for the upward push in export earnings.  In his speech, President Benigno S. Aquino III noted that in the first 8 months of 2012, Philippine exports amounted to US$35 billion, and I was pretty amazed at the growth rates that the export sector has achieved, given that a lot of other regional and global economies have been floundering.  Not a bad performance for the Philippines, although admittedly, more road has yet to be covered.  I think the country is on an upward trajectory--a slow but sure process.  As FVR points out with his trademark greeting--thumbs up for export growth!