His Excellency Jose de Venecia,JR.,

Speaker of the House of Representatives,

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Good morning!

First of all, please allow me, on behalf of the Chinese government and the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines, to extend to all the participants my warm congratulations on the successful convening and fruitful accomplishments of the "China-Philippines Economic Partnership Forum",and my sincere appreciation to the officials and businessmen for your hard work and valuable contributions to the forum. Last but not least, my heartfelt gratitude to the people from different sectors of the two countries for their consistent support.

 

Successful convening of this forum attributes to direct guidance and support from the leaders of our two countries. Yesterday, President Arroyo and Speaker Jose de Venecia personally attended the opening ceremony and President Arroyo delivered an inspiring keynote speech. Secretary Favila and Minister Bo Xilai co-chaired the meeting and made important speeches, which have charted a clear course for the future of Sino-Philippine trade and economic cooperation. Today, we have the great pleasure that Mr. Speaker is with us again in the closing ceremony and he has delivered a moving conclusion speech, which envisages the bright future of China-Philippines economic cooperation, demonstrating the great importance attached by the Philippine Government and Congress to the forum. It is particularly worth pointing out that the successful convening of the forum should first of all attribute to Speaker De Venecia's initiative. Over the years, Mr. Speaker has always been a staunch supporter for enhancing China-Philippine economic relations and has made a lot of strategic proposals in this regard, making valuable contributions to strengthening of Sino-Philippines economic ties. My thanks also go to H.E. Minister Bo Xilai, who has provided us with full support in the whole process of preparation for the forum.

This forum also attributes to the concerted efforts of relevant departments of the two countries. During the preparatory process, the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry and the Department Foreign Affairs, Chinese Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese Embassy collaborated closely in finishing the specific and painstaking tasks. The Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Manila Hotel and many other groups have provided valuable logistic support to the forum. I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude to all the related agencies, groups and individuals involved in preparation of this great event.

Dear friends,

Given its large scale, wide range of topics and clear-cut purpose, this forum is unprecedented in the history of our bilateral economic and tourism cooperation. The significance and far-reaching implication of this forum can not be under-estimated. This forum has given us a clearer view of focuses and potentials of Sino-Philippine economic cooperation, enhanced our confidence, and clarified our orientation for future cooperation. Meanwhile, the forum also serves as a bridge and platform for the practical cooperation between the businessmen of both countries. During the forum, they lost no chance in exchanging information, seeking business opportunities, discussing cooperation while making valuable advices for substantiation and development of the bilateral trade and economic cooperation.

Dear friends,

This forum is not only of historical significance for Sino-Philippine economic cooperation, but also of great value in deepening Sino-Philippine strategic cooperative relations. I am convinced that, with the support of the two governments and with active involvement of business communities from both sides, Sino-Philippine economic partnership will certainly achieve qualitative progress by leaps and bounds, making greater contributions to the economic prosperity and social development of both countries as well as peace, stability and development of the region at large.

Thank you!