President Aquino will tell the world of the “good news about the
Philippines” during his five-day working visit to the United States
through his speeches in top educational institutions and interviews with
various international media organizations.
Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Cuisia Jr. said
Aquino, who arrived here at 8:33 p.m. on Saturday (US time), will once
again trumpet the Philippines’ economic gains under his administration
in his hope of attracting more investors especially in the manufacturing
sector.
Aquino will deliver messages at the John F. Kennedy School of
Government at Harvard University here in Massachusetts and at Columbia
University in New York during his visit, Cuisia said in an interview on
Saturday (US time).
The JFK forum, he noted, “is a very prestigious forum” which normally
invites heads of state, heads of government and foreign ministers.
“I think he will continue to tell, not just the US but (also) the
entire international community, the good news about the Philippines,”
Cuisia said in an interview.
“He (Aquino) will, as you know, be speaking at the United Nations
Global Summit on Climate Change on the 23rd. But he will also have a
business roundtable in New York with business leaders from the US
Chamber of Commerce, the US-ASEAN Business Council and US-Philippine
Society,” he added.
In New York on Sept. 23, Aquino will also have interviews with the
New York Times, the Associated Press, Bloomberg, Foreign Affairs
magazine, and BBC, according to Cuisia.
The President, he said, can talk about “the consistent growth in the
Philippine economy” as well as the reforms that have been undertaken
under his administration.
“And, you know, one that he can be very proud of is the good
governance mantra that he has been advocating from the start of his
administration because that has really engendered tremendous optimism
and confidence among international investors,” he said.
At the same time Aquino, he said, will continue to appeal for support
for the rehabilitation of areas devastated by typhoon “Yolanda
(Haiyan).”
“He will also say that we continue to face challenges. You know, the
typhoon Yolanda, there’s a lot to be done; there’s also a lot of
resources that will be required,” Cuisia said.
Relatedly, the President, he said, will talk about the need for the
more developed countries to do much more in terms of bringing down
carbon emissions when he delivers his message during the United Nations
(UN) Climate Change Summit at the UN Headquarters on Sept. 23 in New
York.
Among those accompanying the President to the US are Foreign Affairs
Secretary Albert del Rosario, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Cabinet
Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, NEDA
Director General Arsenio Balisacan, Presidential Communications
Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. and Presidential
Management Staff Secretary Julia Abad.
In New York on Sept. (US time), Aquino will also have a business
roundtable with business leaders from the US Chamber of Commerce, the
US-ASEAN Business Council and US-Philippine Society.
Before going home to Manila on Sept. 24, Aquino will spend several
hours in San Francisco, California to meet several more business
leaders.
