By CHRIS V PANGANIBAN
DOHA: The Philippine government will vigorously push for the realisation of $1bn joint investment fund which was a commitment reached during the state visit of former president Gloria Arroyo in 2008.
Philippine finance secretary Cesar Purisima, who was here yesterday for the Non-Deal Roadshow in the Middle East, said he met with Qatari officials and the discussions were rewarding since they focused on identifying the specific projects that need to be implemented.
As a result, Purisima expects more exchange of visits between officials of each country to firm up the bilateral trade relations especially that Philippines has already gained a positive 6.1 percent growth rate in the first half of 2012.
“There are a lot of opportunities to move into a higher level,” Purisima said. He and two other top Filipino officials also visited the multi-billion riyal real estate projects of Qatar Investments Authority implemented by Qatari Diar.
He said he was quite impressed with the reclamation projects of The-Pearl and Lusail Marina which offer a lot of opportunities. He said the plans of Philippine Reclamation Authority can benefit the ideas of the projects here.
Purisima said the balance of trade between the two countries has yet to be achieved while the $1bn Qatari fund has not been realised. He expressed optimism that bilateral relations are seen to strengthen in the areas of investments, culture, tourism, and agriculture.
Based on 2011 data by Central Bank of the Philippines, the Philippines exported $19m of products to Qatar while there was $314m import of oil products from Qatar. A Qatari investor, however, is a major shareholder of a huge $6bn copper mining project in Mindanao.
The Peninsula
