UK trade envoy praise Gov. Garcia’s accomplishment

BALANGA CITY, Bataan – Two (2) ambassadors in a row visited Bataan this week, South African Ambassador Martin Slabber last Monday and the British Ambassador Daniel Pruce along with the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy, Richard Graham who visited the Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB) last Wednesday.

Through a short audio-visual presentation, Governor Albert Garcia, enlightened the visitors on the development of Bataan as well as the transformation of the Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB) as the fastest growing freeport in the country, setting Bataan as the premier catalyst for investment bringing progress for the people.

In his speech, Trade Envoy Richard Graham was all praises for Governor Abet, congratulating the governor for the transformation of the freeport, for changing the structure of something important for Bataan. He emphasized that the fantastic freeport is not just simply called FAB by coincidence, but because it’s fabulous.

He stressed in his speech two things: first, he is delighted about the positive financing for SEASIA, gain through access to the UK export finance which has doubled its total capacity for investment in the Philippines to 4.5B pounds, is worth a 100% being ensured, which demonstrated/commitment to helping Filipinos or UK business expand their full operations in Bataan and the partnership between UK and the Philippines which is one of the best ways of doing business here he can imagine, he added.

Secondly, he said that there is an important message he wants to impart to everybody in Bataan, that growth is not just economic for the sake of a chart that looks like climbing a mountain, it’s economic growth in order to provide jobs and opportunities and foreign investments which are very important factors, benefitting in a sense from the logistical difficulties of road transport for using the sea and all the resources providing the people and investors with good access to Clark, Subic and Manila.

He added that he admired or is delighted on the opportunity that despite living in the Philippines for two years now, he didn’t have the chance to come to Corregidor or Mariveles, that it’s a real pleasure for him to come here with his colleagues from the Embassy.

The SEASIA Nectar Port Services, Inc. is a joint venture company with Nectar Group of UK and Web Technologies, Inc, building the first purpose built Dry Bulk Terminal which handles shipment of coal, clinker, silica sand and other cement raw materials, steel, fertilizer and other dry bulk cargo.