As the sun went down and the moon took its rightful place in the skyline of Manila on the eve of November 14, 2020, a group of exemplary individuals came together to share their thoughts and insights on the current state and future of Manila in the global investment scene through an investor’s summit entitled, Manila: A Global Prospect. Mr. Joey Bondoc, the senior research manager of Colliers International, shared their firm’s analysis of Manila’s current stance in terms of being an attractive investment destination for foreign and domestic investors. Bondoc dissected what Manila’s current and long-standing policies are doing to boost Manila’s status as global investment capital, he delved into the positive financial effect brought by the remittances of the Overseas Filipino Workers, and as to how the aggressive infrastructure projects of the country are projected to ramp up the production and supply chain capacities of the existing industries in the country. The influx of multinational and transnational companies setting up shop here in Manila was also discussed by Mr. Bondoc — according to his firm’s findings, this steady and gradual influx and retention of multinational and transnational companies are driving up the equity of office space developers and the interrelated industries that ramps up the country’s GDP, thus boosting Manila’s reputation as a global investment destination.

Public-Private partnerships have been proven to be the key to the success of many developing nations, as the old saying says ‘You cannot build a house with one stone’. Government Institutions have long been paving the road for private entities to have trouble-free access in setting up shops and thriving in the country’s economy. For the tourism industry’s part, the country’s primary institution tasked with encouraging, promoting, and developing tourism as a major socio-economic activity to generate foreign currency and employment and to spread the benefits of tourism to both the private and public sectors — The Department of Tourism’s Secretary, Ms. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat shared her department’s current accomplishments and future plans to further strengthen and boost the identity of Manila as a world-class tourist destination thus driving up the socio-economic benefits that come with the arrival of tourists. According to the secretary, the country has been dubbed as a ‘Dawning Developer’ by the JLL and the World Travel & Tourism Council due to its unwavering commitment and strategic plans to develop the country in every discernable industry. Secretary Puyat declared that the country is expected to double-down on the promotion of tourism once the raging pandemic has subsided, hence the projection of a higher rate of tourist arrivals.