SHANGHAI, China. – The Philippine delegation succeeded to secure the commitment of the JinJiang International Holdings Co., Ltd., China's biggest chain of hotels, to invest in Bohol, in tandem with Special Envoy Carlos Chan as domestic partner. The agreement took place during the meeting of the Philippine delegation headed by Tourism Secretary Alberto Aldava Lim and the JinJiang top guns under its chairman Yu Minliang on October 30 at the JinJiang International headquarters in Shanghai. Apart from Secretary Lim, at the Philippine delegation meeting with the JinJiang group were Chan, Rep. Erico Aumentado (2 nd District, Bohol), Rep. Dakila Cua (Lone District of Quirino, Quirino Gov. Junie Cua and Zhang Zhao Feng, vice president and secretary-general of the Shanghai Overseas Chinese Chamber of Commerce, a close associate of Chan who is Bohol's adopted son and benefactor.

The JinJiang group and Chan will put up a 50-room hotel in Loboc. And they are looking for a local partner in Panglao to establish a five-star hotel. Chairman Yu informed the Philippine panel that JinJiang has over 600 hotels in China and more than that overseas. The chairman said JinJiang International has also a travel agency as an arm to bring Chinese tourists to their hotel chains abroad so that once they establish hotels in the Philippines, Chinese tourists will patronize the JinJiang hotels. He decided to collaborate with Chan after Aumentado informed him that Bohol needs 5,000 new rooms even without the Panglao Airport in place, and that the province has an excellent peace and order condition, with a friendly and hospitable people. Earlier on, the Philippine delegation also conferred with the top officials of Shanghai Ctrip International Travel Service Co., Ltd., the biggest online travel center in China with 8,000 personnel, to include the Philippines, especially Bohol, in their tourism destination drive globally.

The firm is listed in the NASDAQ Stock Exchange of Wall Street, the financial center of New York and USA. The Ctrip group was represented by its vice president Guo Dongjie, Director for International Business Development Alfred Chang, Deputy General Manager for Vacation Coco Yu and Director for Business Development-Vacation Jade Yu Wei. Lim emphasized during the Ctrip meeting that the August 23 hostage-taking was an isolated case. The Philippines under the Aquino Administration has now put in place the necessary measures to prevent a repetition of the Hongkong Chinese nationals' tragic hostage-taking. Loboc Mayor Leon Calipusan and Mayor Benedicto Alcala as well as Councilor Walter Sultan both of Panglao attended the Ctrip meeting which led to the Ctrip officials' assurance that they will include the Philippines in their tourism drive. Chan who was requested by Aumentado and Lim to join the Philippine delegation arranged the business meetings with JinJiang International and the Ctrip group.

Chan had to postpone his a business trip to Russia to join the delegation to the closing rites of the Shanghai Expo 2010. Meanwhile, the Bohol delegation led by First Lady Pureza Veloso-Chatto and Aumentado presented Bohol as a tourism destination before the close of the Shanghai World Expo 2010 at the Sofitel Luxury Hotel in Shanghai Hyland along Nanjing Road in East Shanghai. Lim was the guest of honor, with Chan as an honoree for having financially supported the Philippine Pavilion. Lim presented a plaque of recognition to Larry Chan who represented his father during the occasion. The provincial government, the Provincial Tourism Council and the travel operators of Bohol led by Sultan tendered a dinner for the affair.