DAGUPAN CITY - A 17-man delegation from Shandong, province in China were in Dagupan recently as part of their tour of the country to explore areas where they can pour their investments, such as in fisheries, industries and mass housing.

They were in Dagupan City upon the invitation of House Speaker Jose de Venecia, Jr. who visited Shandong province as well as Cuandong, Beijing and nine other cities  in China last month, along with National Fisheries Director Malcolm Sarmiento.

Shandong is the largest province of China in terms of Gross Domestic Product, three times richer than the Philippines, and is larger than the Philippines in terms of population.

Speaker de Venecia said the Chinese delegation will see the possibility of investing in feed mills, inland and sea farming with the use of fish cages, as well as the manufacturing of boats, espeically those for deep sea operations in eastern Luzon and the Pacific, as well as in building mass houses.

The sea cages, he said, will be set up from Pangasinan to Samar, Leyte, Panay, Palawan and the Davao provinces in Mindanao, to create jobs and incomes for the Filipinos.

Aside from these, the Chines are also interested in investing in building, fish processing plants, cold storae facilities as wella s ice-making facilities in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, De Venecia said.

He added that the Chinese have also signified their intention to invest and develop the production capacity of 250,000 hectares of bangus fishponds in the country by mixing bangus with shrimips, such as of the vannamei and tiger prawn varieties.

While in Shandong province, De Venecia asked businessmen there to also build one million houses in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanoa to help reduce the big housing backlog in the country.

He said the Chinese agreed in principle to construct houses in the Philippines, consisting of five storey tenement houses in Metro Manila due to lack of space and one storey building with two bedrooms, a kitchen, a sala and toilet in the provinces.

As to the mass housing, he said, several Chinese teams already arrived in the country and are now in touch with Vice President Noli de Castro, Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Favila, National Economic and Development Secretary Romulo Neri, the president of the Pag-ibig Fund and the National Housing Authority, and the chairman of the House Committee on Housing Congressman Ed Zalcita. (PNA)