Manila, Philippines - The US-Philippines Society, launched during President Aquino’s official visit to Washington last June, will hold its second board of directors meeting in Manila on Jan. 24. Directors from both the Philippines and the United States will participate in a dynamic program surrounding the board meeting, with events aimed at forging bonds with political and business leaders, fostering an informed discussion of strategic issues, and promoting business and investment opportunities.

The society’s mission is to raise the profile of the Philippines in America through a wide variety of program initiatives, including economic and business development, politics and governance, security, culture, education, and via outreach to the Filipino-American Community.

The Jan. 23-25 program, developed in cooperation with Amb. Jose L. Cuisia Jr. and the Embassy of the Philippines in Washington, and hosted in Manila by Philippine co-chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, includes a business and strategic component and opportunities for in-depth discussion of governance, economic, and reform issues.

Society directors will meet with President Aquino, key Cabinet secretaries, and Supreme Court Chief Justice Lourdes Sereno. Those meetings are designed to bring the society’s directors and officers up to date on the government’s latest initiatives in the areas of economic policy, governance and judicial reforms.

The Jan. 24 program features a policy forum with former US ambassadors to the Philippines for discussion of the strategic environment in the region and beyond, and the outlook for 2013.

A business dialogue, organized by the Makati Business Club through its chairman Ramon Del Rosario Jr., will include briefings on key sectors of the Philippine economy and promote interaction and exploration of investment and trade opportunities between representatives of US and Philippine businesses.

The society’s program will conclude on Jan. 25 with a tour of Clark to observe business development and a briefing at the Asian Institute of Management for discussions on business and good governance.

The directors, including co-chairmen Pangilinan and John Negroponte, honorary chairmen Washington Sycip and Hank Greenberg, Cuisia, and president John Maisto, will review the society’s 2012 programming and draw up plans for 2013.

Highlights from the past year include the Washington, DC gala in honor of President Aquino, events with think tank and academic groups on governance, economic development, security, and judicial reform, a highly successful tour of the Bayanihan Dance troupe to New York and Washington made possible through the initiative of Amb. and Mrs. Cuisia, and outreach programs in several American cities beyond the Washington-New York corridor.

The society intends to build on its promising start by reaching an even greater audience with a comprehensive program agenda planned for the year ahead.

On Jan. 22, former ambassador to Philippines, John Negroponte will address a joint meeting of the Carlos P. Romulo Foundation, AMCHAM, European Chamber and the Asia Society.

Source: The Philippine Star; Business; 22 January 2013