(7 October 2021, Singapore) Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Joseph del Mar Yap received, on 6 October 2021, officials of the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) who are in Singapore to participate in the Joint Leadership Summit (JLS)  from 5 to 7 October 2021, a joint undertaking  of the Singapore Association for Convention & Exhibition Organisers & Suppliers (SACEOS), Association of Event Organisers (AEO), Society for Independent Show Organizers (SISO) and UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry.

The JLS aims to reinvigorate the ASEAN region’s business events industry and inter- and intra-regional business travel. The 3-day event gathered more than 30 participants  comprising ASEAN Ministers, global exhibition organizers, trade association leaders and tourism officials, who exchanged views on global reopening experiences and developments in the tourism industry. It also launched the Asia CEO Summit @ Singapore, an annual dialogue for the regional exhibition industry taking place over 3 years from 2022 to 2024 in Singapore.

During their courtesy call on Ambassador Yap, the country’s tourism officials, namely, Ms. Verna Esmeralda Buensuceso, OIC-Undersecretary, Tourism Development Sector, and Mr. Jaime Victor Bayhonan, OIC-Chief, Policy Formulation and International Cooperation Division, shared with the Embassy the highlights of their participation, as well as outcomes of the Summit, which was  the first international face-to-face meeting with fully vaccinated participants that was held in Singapore since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Also joining the call were Mr. Joel Pascual, President of the Philippine Association of Convention/Exhibition Organizers and Suppliers (PACEOS) and First Secretary and Consul Joyleen E. Santos of the Philippine Embassy.

Undersecretary Buensuceso also conveyed that the insights and perspectives from the Summit would be relevant to the DOT as it is set to host the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) Global Summit in March 2022.

Ambassador Yap and the DOT officials also had a candid exchange of views on the challenges and opportunities for the tourism sectors of both the Philippines and Singapore amid the global pandemic as well as an overview of the assistance extended by the Embassy to Filipinos in Singapore who had been affected by the pandemic. (END).