Davao, Indonesian traders meet to boost sea linkage

(PNA Photo)

DAVAO CITY, Aug 10 – Davao and Indonesian traders are holding talks aimed at enhancing the Davao-GenSan-Bitung Roll-On Roll-Off route service which kicked-off in April, this year.

Indonesian Consul General in Davao Berlian Napitupulu disclosed the ongoing talks of Davao businessmen with its Indonesian partners are follow up to several business meetings held this month in three cities of Indonesia.

Napitupulu said the traders are teaming up with IndoPhil Davao were four Davao businessmen joined the first set of business meetings by 25 Indonesian businessmen in Jakarta, 40 in Manado, and seven in Bitung.

Another business meeting in Indonesia will take place in September which the Indonesian Consulate help in coordinating with the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII).

Initially, Napitupulu said the business consultations in the three cities indicated the strong interests of businessmen from both counties in trading their respective products. He said four businessmen and their Indonesian partners are finalizing talks on their partnership.

Meanwhile, Napitupulu said there are business ventures being arranged as a result of the First Indonesian Manufactured Products Exposition held here last July.

He said cement products are being considered for distribution by a Davao trader even as the Semen Company, the biggest cement producer in Indonesia, will venture into partnership to set up a processing facility here.

The organic plant booster that will also reduce the use of fertilizer is another Indonesian product that was matched with an agri biz partner here he said. The pre-cast fabrication for construction was the third product that was matched with a Davao partner.

Napitupulu said the company’s representative will meet this week with the National Housing Authority (NHA) to introduce the product to the housing agency for its socialized housing projects.

Napitupulu is also hopeful that the participation of the Indonesians to the First Budayaw Festival on September 20 to 24, 2017 in General Santos City and Sarangani Province will open new avenues.

The Festival is a multi-dimensional and multi-disciplinary festival of arts and culture of the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP Eaga) that aims to locate areas of convergence in expanding people-to-people linkages and exchanges within the growth area.

He said understanding each other’s culture and communicating with each other will broaden interests and eventually lead to forging partnership in promoting trade, tourism, and others.

“Now is the right time to strengthen our bilateral relations because as neighbours we share borders between Sulu Sea in the southern part of Mindanao and the Sulawesi Sea in the northern part of Sulawesi in the central part of Indonesia,” Napitupulu added. (Digna D. Banzon/PNA)