From November 16 to 19, Metro Manila took the crown and became the busiest city in the Philippines. This year, the country hosted the APEC Summit with the theme “Building Inclusive Economies, Building a Better World.” Over 800 delegates from around the world flew all the way to the country to participate in such a momentous event. Tight security was enforced days before the delegates and world leaders arrived.With that, cancellation of flights, road closures, as well as suspension of classes and office works were necessary to avoid any inconveniences brought by this event. However, these disruptions were just little sacrifices that we had to endure compared with the benefits it can bring to the country.
The visit of the different heads of states was a great opportunity for the Philippines. Through the meeting of the world leaders, President Benigno Simeon Aquino III was able to seal deals that would further propel the Philippine economy.Among these deals were the establishment of a Philippine–Russia Joint Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation, Avoidance of Double Taxation with Respect to Taxes on Income and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion (Mexico), and Joint Declaration on the Philippines–Australia Comprehensive Partnership. Moreover, President Barack Obama also confirmed that the Philippine Navy would be receiving two additional ships from the United States.
With the world leaders coming together, challenges in communication became inevitable—language barrier in particular. As there were many people from different backgrounds speaking various languages, the danger of miscommunication loomed high. In a continuous effort to eradicate such dilemma, Lexcode took the opportunity to participate in this summit by providing the Embassy of Colombia an interpreter for the event. As a global event it was covered by international media and naturally, interpreters were needed. No one can deny that there’s no room for miscommunication in discussions that are of the same scale as APEC; it is at these gatherings that national developments are born. Though the fruits of the APEC Summit will not happen overnight, it will surely assist in catapulting the economies of the countries that were present.
