New Zealand excited to build business partnerships in Cebu

Courtship and collaboration — the New Zealand government is knocking on the door of the Queen City of the South. An 11-member New Zealand delegation visited Cebu to look into potential investment opportunities in fast-growing areas of trade, tourism, and education.

“We continue to strengthen our ties and explore partnerships that would be beneficial for Cebu and New Zealand,” remarked New Zealand Ambassador to the Philippines David Strachan at a press conference at the Marriott Hotel.

Strachan pointed out that 80% of New Zealand exporters are small and medium businesses, making them ideal partners for Cebuano entrepreneurs. He said that food and beverage, wood processing, furniture, and information technology innovations look most interesting to Kiwi investors.

New Zealand trade commissioner Hernando Banal hinted at continued investment in the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry. He also said that Kiwis have a nose for “collaborative projects in renewable energy” – an industry wherein Filipinos can learn a lot from them.

Banal heaped praise on bilateral trade relations between our countries, noting [$1 billion in trade value in the last five years], which places The Philippines as the Top 15 export destination for New Zealand.

Travel and Tourism

Tourism New Zealand regional manager Steven Dixon was part of the delegation, and he was ecstatic that more Filipinos are visiting their country. 23,000 Filipinos travel to New Zealand annually, and visitor numbers will continue to rise as Philippines Airlines launches non-stop flights between Manila and Auckland.

“This decision by PAL would inject greater momentum into the fast growing two-way tourist flows,” said Dixon.

Around 28,000 New Zealanders travel from New Zealand to the Philippines every year.

Education as a Bridge

Education New Zealand Regional Director John Laxon spoke of the growth potential of educational partnerships between the two countries:

“Filipinos pursuing their education in New Zealand are learning from some of the best education institutions in the world. They earn degrees that are internationally recognized. This gives them an advantage in pursuing their careers in the Philippines or elsewhere around the world.”

With a 35% uptick in 2017, over 4,000 Filipinos now study in New Zealand, making The Philippines the 5th largest source of international students for the Pacific nation.

Choice degree programs for Filipinos are in ICT, commerce and management, and health studies.

via Cebu Daily News / Victor Anthony V. Silva