Largest delegation of Japanese CEOs coming next February
The Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), the central organization of all Japanese regional chambers of commerce, will send the largest delegation of high-ranking executives to the Philippines early next year to boost bilateral economic ties.
“The Philippines maintained rapid economic growth for a number of years now. JCCI will send an economic mission to the Philippines in order to facilitate bilateral economic relations and to support the globalization of Japanese small and medium enterprises,” JCCI International Division Head Takashi Akagi said in a recent meeting with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Ponciano C. Manalo Jr. in Tokyo, Japan.
Akagi was accompanied by JCCI officials, namely Hidefumi Kobayashi, Project General Manager for the International Division, and Tetsuya Matsuoka, Manager for the International Division.
Akagi added that the business mis- sion will be composed of heads of top Japanese companies as well as chief executive officers ( CEOs) of Japan’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from various sectors such as metal manufacturing, trading, telecommunications, travel and tourism, banking, general construction, automotive and auto parts, food, electric power, air transport, and chemicals. The mission is set from February 4 to 7, 2015.
JCCI officials also said that C-level executives from major trading houses, Mitsubishi, Marubeni, Itochu, Mitsui & Company, Sumitomo as well as large corporations such as Honda, Sojitsu, Mizuho Financial Group, IHI Corporation, JTB, Komatsu, JAL and ANA have confirmed their participation in planned business mission.
During the meeting, Manalo told JCCI officials that the DTI will serve as JCCI’s principal government partner in this historic mission. He assured JCCI officials of DTI’s full support on program development
and implementations as well as service to over 100-member companies that are expected to join the mission to the Philippines.
The mission will be led by Akio Mimura, the 19th chairman of JCCI, the former chairman of Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation, the second largest steel producer in the world.
The JCCI is widely recognized as one of the most prestigious, extensive and influential organizations in Japan’s policy-making business environment. It is the central office of 514 regional chambers of commerce in Japan and 79 overseas-based Japanese chambers worldwide. It currently has around 1.26 million member businesses, from large to medium-sized corporations to small firms and single proprietorships.