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“The trade mission was a huge success,” said PACCO President Jaime Lim. “It went really well. We made quite a bit of connections, while we were over there.”

A number of business owners and professionals from Oregon joined the Oregon-Philippine Trade Mission, eager to establish relationships with Philippine business leaders and government officials, develop trade and business opportunities, and understand best practices of doing business.The highlight of the weeklong trade mission to the Philippines brought the PACCO delegation to the Malacañang Palace for an audience with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. “She was pretty impressed with the credentials of our delegates. We brought a good team together.”

Members of the trade mission met with numerous companies from various industries. “There’s a lot going on in the Philippines, in terms of opportunities for economic development: from health tourism to outsourcing,” said Lim. Lim also is pleased with the relationships developed with key officers of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) the country’s umbrella organization that consists of more than 20,000 companies of all sizes, and from all industries. “PCCI really helped us a lot with the trade mission, particularly with getting a meeting with the President. We’re grateful for their support.”

Oregon is a top trading partner of the Philippines. It is the third largest U.S. exporter, with the states of Texas and California ranking higher. Oregon exported more that $600 million worth of products and services in 2005, with 70% in technology and 23% in crop production, and 3% in paper and wood products. There are some 10,627 Filipinos living in the State of Oregon (2000 US Census Bureau), and more than 3,000 Filipinos residing in Portland.

In all, there are more than 20 Filipino-American business and civic organizations promoting the Philippines and preserving Filipino heritage and culture.The delegation attended government and private sector briefings on business opportunities and investment incentives, one-on-one meetings with industry executives, as well as direct company site visits, while simultaneously promoting the State of Oregon and its products.

The trade mission enabled the Oregon delegation to meet and establish relationships with business leaders, government officials, and business associations; develop trade and business opportunities; understand best practices of doing business; and experience Philippine culture.

Among the delegates include Carmen Lu, founder of Lu Enterprises and publisher of Latin News, was eager to make connections with Philippine businesses and organizations that are interested in marketing products and/or services to Latino businesses and markets in Oregon and the United States. Lu Enterprises maintains a high profile community presence in the Northwest, sponsoring community events such as Cinco de Mayo, the Portland Rose Festival, the Oregon International Airshow, and the Portland State University Chicano- Latino Scholarship Gala.

Also attending the trade mission is Sig Unander, editor-in-chief of Latino Perspective magazine. In 2002 he published a limited-edition of fine art lithographs personally signed by the distinguished aviators of the legendary Mexican Fighter Squadron 201, which conducted joint operations with the U.S. Army in the liberation of the Philippines during World War II. He also helped produce a documentary film on the squadron.