Philippine President Rody Duterte and Indonesian President Joko Widodo launched today a ferry service which will connect Davao City, Gen. Santos City and Bitung, North Sulawesi marking the official opening of a trade route between the two countries.
The new ferry service will cut by about one week the transport of goods from North Sulawesi, Indonesia to the Philippines which used the Manila Port as entry point.
Even before the ferry service could be launched, Indonesian Ambassador Johny Lomintang told me yesterday that North Sulawesi would be needing a lot of fruits, especially bananas, from Mindanao because of the increased number of tourists in Manado.
In a short speech delivered during the launching, President Duterte said the Roll-On-Roll-Off Ferry Service will open trade and business opportunities between the Southern Philippines and North Sulawesi of Indonesia.
On his part, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said the ferry service will promote growth in the remote regions of both countries.
The new route will shorten the transport time of goods from Bitung to Manila from three weeks to only two days.
After their speeches, the backdrop of the stage set up in Kudos Port in Sasa, Davao City opened to allow the two leaders to witness the Cebu-based Asia Marine Transport Corp.’s M/V Super Shuttle RORO 12 leave the port en route to Bitung for its maiden voyage.
M/V Super Shuttle RORO 12 has a 500-TEU capacity and is owned by businessman Paul Rodriguez.
Among the goods to be traded include animal feeds, aqua products, charcoal, coffee beans, construction materials, copra, feed ingredients, fertilizers, food and beverages, fresh fruits, ice cream products, meats, peanuts, poultry (halal), soya, sugar, and synthetics, Mindanao Development Authority (MINDA) said in a statement.
(Photos show Presidents Duterte and Widodo stand side by side as they bid goodbye to the crew of MV Super Shuttle RORO 12 as it sails from Kudos Port in Sasa, Davao City to Bitung, Indonesia and on stage for the launching of the ferry service.)
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