Bahrain royalty eyes future investments in Subic Freeport

Her Royal Highness Princess Shaikha Jawaher Bint Khalifa Al Khalifa, Princess of Bahrain, is eyeing possible future investments inside this premier Freeport during her visit at the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) administration building on Wednesday (January 10).

According to SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Business and Investment Group (BIG) Renato Lee III, the Senior Royal of Bahrain has expressed her interests particularly in the airport, port expansion, fuel depot, renewable energy, cyber security and tourism sectors.

Princess Shaikha and her entire delegation were given a briefing by members of the SBMA Business and Investment Group regarding the business climate here and the benefits of investing in Subic Bay Freeport.

“The Bahraini Princess expressed her interest in investing in Subic Bay Freeport since her companies, Green Aventurine Holdings, Future8 L.L.C. and Nfinity8 Group, deal with investment management for Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) markets, and serve as regional intermediaries for cross-border investments,” Lee said.

The SBMA official also shared that the groups’ portfolio includes real estate, commodity trading, oil and gas services, footwear manufacturing, investment management, marketing and advertising, trade and product distribution, e-commerce, and startup support.

Lee lauded the visit of Princess Al Khalifa, citing that the renowned philanthropist and entrepreneur is known as an epitome for women empowerment. “We are grateful that Her Highness graced us with her presence in Subic Freeport, hopefully we will be doing business with her in the near future,” he added.

Princess Al Khalifa is an essential figure in public relations and marketing, with the goal to create a shared space of inclusivity for sustainable asset management and business growth with her utmost trust in the power of the young generations.

A young visionary whose entrepreneurial boldness and ideals have steered the company to its full potential, the princess aims to build a conglomerate of nine different sectors while unifying numerous startups across various geographies. She is also an executive team member of the European Women’s Association and continues to inspire young girls globally with her entrepreneurial ventures in various fields. (MPD-SBMA)

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Gordon opens PRC training center in Subic Freeport

Senator Richard Gordon presided over the inauguration here on Sunday of a training center that would provide vocational education to residents from disaster-stricken areas in the country.

Gordon, who is also chairman of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), said the training center is a joint undertaking of PRC and the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Royal Charity Organization (RCO).

Gordon, along with RCO Secretary General H.E. Dr. Mustafa Alsayed, led the ribbon-cutting and turnover ceremony for the facility located at the former Naval Magazine area of this free port.

The PRC has previously established its logistics center for local and international disaster-response operations in the same area.

According to Gordon, the vocational training center will help ensure sustainable growth through education to victims of disaster-stricken areas in the country.

“The center will provide people with market-driven skills and training so they can secure steady, well-paying jobs,” Gordon said.

He added that the center is part of the recovery projects that Bahrain’s RCO had promised to fund to help improve the lives of victims of Typhoon Haiyan, locally known as Yolanda, which devastated several parts of the country in November 2013.

Alsayed, meanwhile, was ecstatic over the opening of the Subic vocation training center and expressed hope that it will produce students who will use their education to uplift their calamity-stricken community.

Gordon and Alsayed also inaugurated a similar vocational training center in Tacloban City a day before the Subic launch. Tacloban was the community worst-hit by Haiyan.

Gordon said these centers will offer training courses in electrical installation and maintenance, plumbing technology, carpentry, masonry, commercial cooking, bread and pastry production, seafarers rating, and a finishing course for call center agents.

The training centers each have four rooms that consist of two workshop rooms, an equipment storage area and one administration office. They both have a capacity to seat 30 to 40 students at a time, or from 15 to 20 students for laboratory sessions.

According to PRC Secretary General Oscar Palabyab, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority will also play a big role on the project, since the agency will be accrediting the students who will graduate from the vocational courses.

“This is also an expansion of our humanitarian service, as well as our relationship with different partners,” Palabyab added.

Palabyab said the PRC training center in the Subic Bay Freeport was constructed at around P7.8 million, while the facility in Tacloban costs around P5.3 million. (JRR/MPD-SBMA)


PHOTOS:

[1] Sen. Richard Gordon, chairman of the Philippine Red Cross, receives a symbolic key to the PRC Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport from Dr. Mustafa Alsayed, secretary general of the Royal Charity Organization (ROC) of the Kingdom of Bahrain, during the recent inauguration and turnover ceremony of the facility that was financed by the RCO. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

[2] Officials of the Philippine Red Cross headed by Sen. Richard Gordon, and the Royal Charity Organization (RCO) of the Kingdom of Bahrain headed by Dr. Mustafa Alsayed, link arms in a symbol of unity following the recent inauguration and turnover ceremony of the Philippine Red Cross Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport, which was financed by the RCO. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

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