Malaysia will mark its biggest presence in the Philippines through the Malaysia Promotion Programme (MPP) in Manila, which will take place from 11 to 18 March. 

This event serves as a platform to strengthen the brand of Malaysia in the Philippines and to promote Malaysia as a preferred partner for sourcing, trade and investments, tourism destination and a gateway to ASEAN.

MPP Philippines will showcase the best of Malaysian food, culture and the country’s construction services providers and building materials suppliers through the three activities lined up to promote the “Malaysia” brand.

The event will be spearheaded by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), organised by MATRADE and led by Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed. 

MITI in a statement said the event will kick start with Citarasa Malaysia at Glorietta Shopping Mall which will showcase Malaysian dishes and cuisine, giving guests a chance to taste Malaysian food and culture. 

The programme will include cultural show by dancers from Tourism Malaysia and 25 companies from Malaysia and Philippines in the food and Halal section will take part in the exhibition and business matching programme.

Other than the Citarasa Malaysia, the Malaysia Promotion Programme also includes Malaysia Business Forum and Worldbex Exhibition. 

The business forum, titled “Leveraging Partnership, ASEAN and Beyond” will be held on 12 March at Shangri-La Hotel, Manila is targeted to attract close to 300 participants. 

The forum will serve as a platform for businesses from Malaysia and the Philippines to explore business opportunities in both countries as well as strengthen network.

The Worldbex Exhibition which will take place from 14-18 March at the World Trade Centre, Metro Manila will see the participation of 27 Malaysian exhibitors that will showcase and promote Malaysian building and construction materials, office furniture and services. 

The business meeting will be arranged for the Philippines and Malaysian companies targeted to increase Malaysian products and services export to the Philippines market.

Datuk Seri Mustapa is also scheduled to meet secretary Ramon Lopez, secretary of Trade and Industry of the Philippines to discuss ways to further enhance economic cooperation between both countries as well as to deepen regional economic integration agenda via the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2025 in, including efforts towards expediting the conclusion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations.

The Philippines remains an important trade and investment partner for Malaysia. 

In 2017, Malaysia-Philippines bilateral trade grew by 26.1 per cent  to USD 5.94 billion (RM 25.51 billion), with exports to the Philippines grew by 21.2 per cent to reach USD 3.85 billion (RM 16.53 billion) being one of the fastest growing economies in ASEAN with big population and growing middle class, there is a lot of potentials in the Philippines for Malaysian businesses to explore.

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