President Marcos expressed hopes that the Philippines and a Japanese trading conglomerate can collaborate more in terms of the country's development agenda.

Marcos made the statement during his meeting with Masumi Kakinoki, the president and chief executive officer of Marubeni Corp., on Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 18, at the Malacañan Palace.

“Again, [It’s a pleasure] to meet with you again… We made some progress from February, the last time that we met where some of the issues were raised,” the President told Kakinoki during the Palace courtesy call.

“I hope we can do more because that’s really a very important part of our development program. So welcome once again,” Marcos added as he recognized the Japanese firm’s role in the Philippine development agenda.

The President noted that Marubeni has been in the Philippines for over a hundred years, and Kakinoki’s arrival in the country was “like visiting relatives, visiting family.”

Kakinoki, for his part, stated that Marubeni and the Philippines are growing together.

“Thank you so much. I want to express my sincere gratitude for the Philippines. It’s such a huge opportunity to meet with you again… I’m very much excited to be here today,” Kakinoki said.

During their meeting in Tokyo last February, Marubeni reaffirmed its partnership with the Philippines under the Marcos administration, with a commitment to the country’s renewable energy, water, and transportation sectors.

Kakinoki had told Marcos that, in addition to the traditional generation system, his company was “very much committed to increase renewable energy projects like mini hydro, solar, and wind.”

The Japanese firm has also been leading the charge in providing water to communities in the western part of Metropolitan Manila.