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A shower of confetti dropped from a helicopter onto the group of Cebu business leaders and government officials as they walked along Asiatown IT Park's new retail strip, The Walk.
The airborne salute last Friday was a festive start for this year's Cebu Business Month (CBM) celebration.
It was the first time a helicopter show was staged in the 17 years of the CBM mounted by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Each year organizers strive to make the event bigger and with more impact.
Last Friday's opening, sponsored by Ayala Center Cebu, was attended by CCCI president Edward Gaisano, former CCCI president Francis Monera, CBM chairperson Ma. Teresa “Tess” Chan, CCCI board of trustees and local government officials.
With the theme “Converge in Cebu,” Chan said their goal is to attract more foreign and national visitors to visit Cebu and to seek trade and business opportunities here.
“We are emphasizing Cebu's competitive advantage as the geographical center of the country,” Chan told a press conference.
She said the celebration is even “grander” this year as CCCI celebrates its 95th year of promoting trade and business in Cebu.
“This year also marks our journey towards the 100th year of the chamber as we recognize and recall the milestones of CCCI,” Chan said.
Like the previous CBMs, the chamber continues to promote Cebu's “twin-win” industries of tourism and information and communication (ICT) technology.
It also gives special emphasis on entrepreneurship.
Around 8,000 delegates are expected to attend key activities including ICT conferences, tourism and entrepreneurship congresses, the Grand Exposition (Expo) and Grand Chamber Awards.
This year’s event budget of P14 to P16 million will come from sponsorships and assistance from different companies and local government units, said Chan.
TOURISM
With Cebu considered a gateway for national and international destinations, tourism chairperson Milagros Espina said they are intensifying the Suroy-Suroy Sugbo tourism caravan on July 12 to 13 in partnership with the Cebu Provincial Government.
Weekend cultural shows in malls, heritage tour on June 9 and mall-wide sale in SM, Metro Gaisano and Robinson's on July 13 to 15 are part of the efforts to promote Cebu as a shopping destination.
Espina said the chamber has opened the search for Young Ambassadors and Ambassadress of Business and Industry.
Winners of the search will serve as the voice of the younger generation and will help promote Cebu further.
The Philippine International Tourism Fair (PITF) aims to help push Cebu’s delivery of tourism services to be at par with international standards.
ICT
Chan said CBM 2008 will have two conferences— the Philippine Open Source Summit and ICT Conference on E-Governance and Digital Marketing.
Bonifacio Belen, summit director, said the summit aims to encourage entrepreneurship among IT professionals by using open source software.
This will help local IT professionals develop application tools, software solutions and operating systems.
Two festivals—Colon Shopping (June 7 to21) and Carbon Farmers (June 11 to 15)—will grace the 2008 celebration with the specific purpose of highlighting the contribution downtown trade in the vibrant economic performance of Cebu.
Go Negosyo sa Cebu, which will be held on June 20, features discussions and tips from successful entrepreneurs.
Chairperson Jay Aldeguer said they will focus on providing product development and marketing knowledge among aspiring entrepreneurs to help them start their business.
Aldeguer is also spearheading the 2nd Cebu Regional Retailers Conference on June 21, which gives a good view on the performance and challenges of the retail industry.
On the same day, the Private Enterprises Accelerated Resource Linkage Phase 2 (Pearl 2) will sponsor a forum on best practices in lean manufacturing and regaining competitiveness in the global market.
Another highlight activity, Chan said, is the Grand Expo which will gather exhibitors from Thailand and Malaysia and buyers from China, South Korea, Canada, Russia and Israel.
