View source for Mindanao business leaders to sustain export to Dubai

*Source:http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=11&rid=849166
*Thursday, January 21, 2016
:(PNA), LGI/LCM/DIGNA D. BANZON/LDP

DAVAO CITY, Jan. 21 (PNA) -- The participation of business leaders in Mindanao at the Dubai Annual Investment Forum led to the initial entry of fruits grown from this island to the Middle East.

This was disclosed by Undersecretary Janet Lopoz, executive director of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), in a forum held at Abreeza Ayala Mall on Wednesday.

Lopoz said it has been their objective to penetrate other foreign markets and through business matching between Mindanao businessmen and buyers of their products.

Earlier, Marilou Ampuan, one of the founders and secretary-general of the Mindanao Islamic Chamber of Commerce and who participated in the Dubai AIF said they submitted business venture proposals.

"We are being assisted by MinDA and the Davao City Investment and Promotion Center (DCIPC) to make good with our proposals," she said.

Lopoz reported that initial shipment of mango and calamansi produced in Region XII already entered Dubai market.

She said Rickson Olympus of Tulunan, North Cotabato shipped one ton of mango to Dubai last November 29, 2015 that was sourced from 15 farmers who are members of the Tulunan Cooperative.

This was followed with another shipment on December 18, 2015 of one ton mango and a trial shipment of two boxes of bananas coming from small farm growers of General Santos City and Tampakan, South Cotabato.

She said a shipment of calamansi of 1.5 tons was made on December 27, 2015 that were consolidated from small farm growers in Sultan Kudarat particularly in the towns of Lambayong and Esperanza and in Matalam, North Cotabato.

MinDA is hopeful that this shipment will be sustained considering the huge demand of the Dubai market on agricultural products.

She said the business sector is also looking at the Filipino population there of 523,000 or 21.3 percent of the Dubai population.

At present, the Department of Agriculture (DA) 13 is assisting in the marketing and scouting for other markets.