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By Robina Asido

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte welcomed the grand opening of Mitsukoshi BGC, the first Japanese mall in the Philippines and Southeast Asia in Taguig City on Friday.

"The Philippines extends a warm welcome to our foreign investors, we appreciate your decision to invest in our nation. This is a significant milestone in property development, tourism and culture," said Duterte.

"For years, the Philippines and Japan have forged ties to promote economic development and cultural appreciation of our equally colorful heritage. We are grateful that foreign investors such as Japanese investors consider the Philippines a highly visible and important investment destination for business expansion and diversification in Asia but this would not have been possible without your Filipino partners," she added.

Duterte noted that the partnership of Nomura Real Estate, Mitsukoshi Isetan holdings, Federal Land Inc. "which demonstrated their aggressiveness, optimism, and love of country, inspires Filipino pride."

The vice president noted that Japan has been a constant partner of the Philippines, making it one of the country’s largest infrastructure investors and government collaborators.

"The Marcos administration is confident that through investments such as this, the Philippines is a step closer to our national goal of building a stronger homeland. We are grateful to our investors and private sector partners for continuing to help diversify our economy and keep our business climate attractive and conducive to business development," he added.

Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines expressed hope that "many Filipinos will get to enjoy Japanese cuisines and have fun shopping for their favorite Japanese product" with the grand opening of Mitsukoshi BGC.

"This event is a key indication of growing Japanese investment in the Philippines signifying highly valued Philippine economies. In this regard we look forward to the next chapter of Federal Land and Nomura or NRE journey to develop more real estate properties in the Philippines through their new joint ventures," he said.

Also present during the event were Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, Taguig City Mayor Lani Cayetano, and Alfred Ty of Federal Land. DMS