GENERAL SANTOS City and Clark Development Corp. (CDC) are reenergizing economic ties with the recent signing of an agreement to boost trade and tourism.
“Today, we will officially seal an agreement that will benefit from this collaboration that will enhance trade, investment, and tourism activities and ensure convenient and efficient delivery of meaningful services to our respective stakeholders,” GenSan Mayor Ronnel C. Rivera said in his message during the hybrid signing event on Oct. 22.
Aside from CDC, the agreement was also signed by Clark International Airport Corp. and the Subic-Clark Alliance for Development.
The Central Luzon-SOCCSKSARGEN (South Cotabato-Cotabato-Sultan Kudarat-Sarangani-GenSan) Products Exchange was also officially launched to expand linkages between the two regions.
CDC President and Chief Executive Officer Manuel R. Gaerlan said they are aiming to revive direct flights between Clark and GenSan, which recently inaugurated its upgraded airport.
“This pandemic caused us a lot of displacement, a lot of stress, but I hope we maintain our partnership in the future na ma-connect din tayo not only through the internet but yung connecting flights,” Mr. Gaerlansaid.
An inaugural flight between GenSan and Clark in Pampanga was launched in Feb. 2020, just before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March. The launch was complemented by a matching session among the two areas’ business communities.
GenSan first forged a partnership with CDC in Sept. 2019, alongside agreements with the Pampanga cities of Angeles, Mabalacat and San Fernando.
The agreements were part of a program to encourage trade linkages under the United States Agency for International Development’s Strengthening Urban Resilience for Growth project. — MSJ