Business, investments assured for Region 8

TACLOBAN CITY, July 30 (PNA) -- Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Diño has assured to work for more businesses and investments in the Eastern Visayas region.

Diño visited the region this week and met with local chief executives in Samar and Leyte to follow President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to listen to the people’s voice, know their problems and immediately find solutions.

He assured that for Leyte province, he will work for more investments and business locators to the area, both local and foreign.

Before the end of the year, the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Visayas, which has its official residence at the Malacañang sa Sugbo, will be conducting a Foreign Investors’ Forum in Cebu where each of the province and place in the whole the Visayas area will be able to showcase their potentials as business location as well as the products they can offer.

Foreign investors will be invited to the forum.

“It will not happen soon, but definitely we will work for more investments both from local and foreign investments. It will be for the whole Visayas and not just for Cebu,” Diño told local officials here on Friday.

Diño is one of the founders of the Bis

ayas Na Pud movement, the first group to support Duterte's presidential campaign in the Visayas.

He is also chief operation officer and executive vice president of land developer Fifth Avenue Property Development Corporation.

The official vowed to respond to questions and concerns addressed to his office in two weeks.

“I cannot promise you that I can solve the problem hundred percent but I will make you feel that there is really a difference now that the office is active” he told local officials here," he said.

“Every time you ask questions, every time you send emails or letters to the office, we will make sure that within two weeks we can answer you already may that news is bad or good, we will answer you,” he added.

In Leyte, majority of the local chief executives were in attendance including presidents and representatives of the various Chamber of Commerce and Industry headed by Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla.

Among those raised during the consultative meeting was for a possible expansion of the Leyte Industrial Development Estate (LIDE) to accommodate more locators, as well as business insurance for commercial businesses and establishments in Tacloban City.

Leyte is currently home to the copper smelting and refining operations of the Philippine Associated Smelting and Refining Corp. (PASAR).

PASAR, which operates within the 425-hectare LIDE, the country’s only copper smelting and refining firm and its products are among the top 10 exports of the Philippines.

Leyte has also been a Hall of Fame awardee as Most Business Friendly province years back and was cited for institutionalizing the observance of the Leyte Provincial Business Month every October, for promoting and grooming the province as an IT destination through the PEZA declared Leyte ICT Park and the launching of the Technology Business Incubator (TBI) that provides initial assistance to starting entrepreneurs in the IT field. (PNA)
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