CFO inks MoU with PhilCham SG

THE Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Philippine Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (PhilCham SG) to link Philippine and Singapore-based Filipino businesses.

“Our aim with that partnership is to see how we can link many of the members of the Philippine Business Chamber of Commerce in Singapore to potential partners here in the Philippines,” CFO Secretary Dante Francis “Klink” M. Ang II told reporters in a media briefing during the 2026 Filipino Diaspora Summit.

Mr. Ang said the CFO will also attend a NAFA conference in August in the US, adding that they will try to pursue more memoranda of understanding with Philippine Chambers of Commerce in the States.

He added that the Philippines previously inked an MoU with the PhilCham in Indonesia and a partnership with the Philippine Nursing Association.

The summit, held on June 16, is the first Filipino Diaspora Summit in 11 years.

According to the CFO, 6 million Filipinos are permanently residing abroad globally but remain as among the government’s underutilized assets for developments.

Several diaspora leaders in the summit also urged non-resident Filipinos (NRF) to invest in the Philippines.

Filipino Communities Council of Australia Inc. President Roxanne Sarthou, also a healthcare entrepreneur, called for improved education on investment for NRFs to encourage Filipinos overseas to put money in the Philippines.

“The diaspora externally, from Australia, Austria, Germany, wherever we’re coming from, we do want to invest in the Philippines,” Ms. Sarthou said during the summit’s panel discussion on economic engagement. “But one thing for sure is we still have a long way to go in understanding the investment climate here in the Philippines and how to navigate that.”

Meanwhile, National Federation of Filipino American Associations Chair Mariela M. Fletcher said the economic capital of the diaspora lies in the entrepreneurship that the NRFs engage in.

“What we really should think of is globally, we can compete. But it’s truly not just competing, but also connecting our opportunities abroad and our opportunities back home,” Ms. Fletcher said, urging fellow NRFs to share their learnings from their respective new countries to the Philippines.  — Kaela Patricia B. Gabriel