Photo courtesy of CIO
DAVAO CITY, Philippines — A local official who is in Japan for Davao City’s Investment and Tourism Roadshow said a Japanese company was eyeing the city for its business expansion.
In a statement on Thursday, October 19, Davao City Investment and Promotion Center chief Lemuel Ortonio said a Kyoto-based chocolate company would possibly invest in Davao.
Ortonio did not name the company, but he said there was “high interest in the chocolate products of Davao City” when they visited the city on Tuesday, October 17.
“We are happy that one of emerging products of the Dabawenyos is getting noticed around the world,” he said.
Ortonio’s statement came following the city’s allotment of P2 million grant as support for the city’s cacao industry to boost its target to become the country’s Chocolate Capital.
The city’s cacao industry was eyeing the US and Europe as its potential market. Recently, Val Turtur, executive director of the Cacao Industry Development Association of Mindanao Inc. (CIDAMI) bared that investors from Belgium, France and Japan have already expressed interest in doing business with the cacao sector here.
Davao’s chocolate products would also participate in the “Salon du Chocolat” in Paris, France on October 28 to November 1.
The 22-member delegation from Davao City met with Japanese officials at the Kyoto City Hall “exchanging insights about possible cooperation in the fields of agriculture and tourism, among others,” said Ortonio. He said he also presented the city’s economic profile and its Preferred Investment Areas.
The city’s government officials were welcomed by Kyoto City International Affairs Office Senior Director Keiji Maki and Industry and Tourism Bureau Senior Director Masatoshi Moringa. (davaotoday.com)
