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The United Portusers Confederation of the Philippines, Inc. launched its policy and programs campaign to help resolve industry issues and bottlenecks
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Under the framework and slogan “Abante Logistics!”, the campaign is part of UPC’s vision to be the prime mover for growth in the logistics industry, in support of a competitive and sustainable supply chain
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The campaign also aims to be a pro-active advocacy and a venue to facilitate member issues and share best practices
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The campaign has three signature events—the Partners’ Forum, Stakeholders’ Summit, and the Helping Hands golf tournament
The United Portusers Confederation of the Philippines, Inc. (UPC) has launched its policy and programs campaign with the aim of institutionalizing and strengthening engagement between the private sector and concerned government agencies in order to resolve industry issues and bottlenecks.
The campaign under the framework and slogan “Abante Logistics!” is part of UPC’s vision to be the prime mover for growth in the logistics industry, in support of a competitive and sustainable supply chain, UPC president Nelson Mendoza said in a speech during the launch on August 8.
UPC explained that “abante” is a Spanish term that means “move forward,” “progress,” “advance,” and if taken within the context of logistics, can literally mean “movement,” which is how transportation and goods, two sectors in the logistics industry, are meant to be positioned.
Mendoza in a presentation noted that efficient logistics management helps streamline supply chain operations, leading to lower transportation, inventory, and warehousing costs.
The challenges, however, are that there are a number of sectors and stakeholders involved in the industry and there are current issues that impact on the cost and flow of doing business in the country and cross-border.
Moreover, the industry is constantly evolving, making it crucial to stay ahead in the game.
As a response to the challenges, Mendoza said UPC is launching Abante Logistics, which aims to, among others, strengthen engagement between concerned government agencies and the private sector to identify and resolve industry and stakeholder issues and bottlenecks. It also aims to be a pro-active advocacy and a venue to facilitate member issues and share best practices.
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The campaign has three signature events—the Partners’ Forum, Stakeholders’ Summit, and the Helping Hands golf tournament.
The Partners’ Forum, the first of which held during the campaign’s launch, is a quarterly “intimate” event with heads of organizations and companies, and relevant government agencies to discuss policies, programs, and trends relevant to the logistics industry.
Resolutions/action points that will be generated out of the forum discussions will either be acted on by UPC/through the help of relevant government agencies, or will be raised during the annual Stakeholders’ Summit.
The first Partners’ Forum tackled current and future trends on supply chain as presented by Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines vice president Pierre Carlo Curay and an update from the transport department regarding its plans and programs as discussed by Maritime Industry Authority deputy administrator for operations Nannette Dinopol.
The annual summit, meanwhile, will highlight key issues, trends, developments, projects, programs raised in the various Partners’ Forums to come up with action points that will serve as a resolution, which will be acted on by UPC and/or raised to the appropriate government or private sector partner.
The annual summit will also further discuss issues and current industry trends and developments, as well as to showcase potential accomplishments from the Partners’ Forums.
The golf tournament, meanwhile, is both a fellowship and fundraising activity for UPC. Proceeds from the tournament will be used to support the association’s beneficiaries, including Caritas’ feeding program.
UPC is composed of industry associations representing the transport and logistics industry, including warehouse operators, forwarders, customs professionals, exporters, importers, and manufacturers.
Member associations include the Association of Off Dock CFS Operators of the Philippines; Association of Transshipment Operators of the Philippines; Philippine Association of Black Iron & Galvanized Iron Pipes & Tubes Manufacturers, Inc.; Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines; Procurement and Supply Institute of Asia; Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc.; Philippine Insurers & Reinsurers Association of the Phils.; and Philippine Multimodal Transport & Logistics Association, Inc.
