THE American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (AmCham Philippines), Inc. said it is considering opening an office in Iloilo City in light of the rapid development of the Western Visayas Region.
Ebb Hinchliffe, executive director of AmCham Philippines, met with Mayor Jose S. Espinosa III on Monday for an exploratory visit.
According to Mr. Hinchliffe, the chamber has a good representation in Metro Manila, Central Visayas, and Mindanao but not in Western Visayas.
“We’re looking of putting up an office here. As one of the fastest-growing areas in the country, it’s time for us to take a look over here and see what we can do to support companies and businesses,” he said.
The goal is to encourage more companies to invest and eventually create jobs, Mr. Hinchliffe said.
“We promote business. We encourage companies to come in and invest to create jobs. Our focus is to get many Filipinos jobs,” he added.
“There are two ways to get people out of poverty — jobs and education. If we can get more companies to come here and open their offices here and eventually hire people that would be a good cure to terrorism and poverty,” he said.
Comparing his visit to the city decades ago, Mr. Hinchliffe said the city’s transformation has been comprehensive.
“I was here 26 years ago and at that time there were two stoplights and certainly no malls and no highways. I’ve never seen a city change so much, transformed in a short period of time as this city has. And I travel all over, from Laoag in the north all the way down to General Santos City in the south. It’s just amazing how Iloilo has transformed into this very modern city,” he said.
Once a decision is taken, AmCham may open the office before the end of the year, Mr. Hinchliffe added. — Emme Rose Santiagudo
