Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Cristina Roque held a series of productive meetings with top executives of global firms Cognizant, A.P. Moller-Maersk and AstraZeneca (AZ) to explore opportunities for expanding operations in the Philippines and strengthen collaboration across various sectors including technology, logistics, and health care.
Roque’s meeting with Cognizant executive vice president and President for Asia Pacific and Japan Jane Livesey focused on the global technology firm’s plans to enhance its presence in the Philippines, with emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI).
Livesey shared Cognizant’s vision to increase investments in AI-related projects, capitalizing on the Philippines’ skilled talent pool and robust IT infrastructure.
Meanwhile, A.P. Moller-Maersk chairman Robert Maersk Uggla hinted at possible investment opportunities in logistics and sustainability in the Philippines.
Maersk, a global leader in shipping and logistics, emphasized the Philippines’ role as a key market for imports and exports and its importance as a source of global talent.
The discussion also explored potential public-private partnerships in port development to enhance trade efficiency and foster economic growth, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao.
The DTI highlighted the incentives available to Maersk under the CREATE Act, which includes tax breaks, customs duty exemptions and access to strategic logistics hubs.
AstraZeneca (AZ) Chief Executive Marc Dunoyer offered support to transformative opportunities in leveraging AI and digital health solutions to advance clinical trials in the Philippines.
Roque noted the country’s potential to conduct nearly all of AstraZeneca’s portfolio trials.
“By harnessing the power of AI and digital health, we can revolutionize disease prevention, early detection and treatment — paving the way for better health care that will benefit our people and economy,” Roque said.
They also discussed making medicines more affordable and accessible to Filipinos.