A new breed of OFWs

We attended a business networking dinner organized by Global Pinoy (Association of Filipino Entrepreneurs) Singapore last Monday night, 11 June 2007. It was held at the newly opened Filipino restaurant 7107 Flavours located at Marina Square. It was well attended by Filipino professionals and entrepreneurs based in Singapore and visiting from the Philippines. The keynote speaker was Dept of Trade and Industry representative to Singapore Edgardo Garcia. His talk was informative and positive - the Philippine economy is improving and the future is bright - a much anticipated message for us overseas Filipinos who are hoping for a turnaround in our country's fortunes.

There are a lot of investment areas opening up in the Philippines not only in Metro Manila but also in the different regions brought about by the One Town One Project (OTOP) initiative by the government. There was one or two investment opportunities that really piqued our interest here at PinoyLobang and we will be sharing more on this in another post.

Personally, I believe the networking dinner was long overdue. It's about time we SingaPinoys came together and through this venue, help each other and in the process help our country. Hopefully, this is only the first of many such opportunities to band together to bring about positive change in our lives - at least in the economic aspect, through entrepreneurship. So kudos to Global Pinoy President Fara Blanco as well as to the Global Pinoy members who helped organize this event. Global Pinoy's Vice President Sherwin Enriquez had an interesting remark in his closing speech - that one of Global Pinoy's missions is to transform OFWs into OFEs or OFIs i.e. Overseas Filipino Entrepreneurs and Overseas Filipino Investors. We here at PinoyLobang wish Global Pinoy success in this mission.

7107 Flavours itself is another story. A first in Singapore for a Filipino cuisine fine dining experience. The restaurant's ambience is definitely conducive to business dinners or meetings. I would recommend bringing your Singaporean colleagues or business clients curious about Filipino food is to this place. Adding to the Filipino ambience are the exotic, handmade vases from OurTribe - a Filipino company selling beautiful home and fashion accessories made of indigenous materials.

Global Pinoy and 7107 Flavours coming together for the Business Networking Dinner is a good example of what SingaPinoys can do together. Here's to more collaborations in the future for all the OFEs and OFIs here in Singapore.