Thursday, December 09, 2004 MAASIM, Sarangani, Philippines-- MalaysianMinister for Industrial Development Datuk Ewon Ebin said Wednesday theyare eyeing possible joint ventures in palm oil and fish production withthe Sarangani Provincial Government and local businessmen following athree-day visit here.

Ebin, who led a 19-man delegation from Malaysia that arrived Mondaymorning, said they were impressed with the advanced fish productionmethods of local producers here and looked forward towards exchangingtechnologies and expertise with their Filipino counterparts.

"We have seen your fishing port facilities and they are far more advancethan what we have in Sabah," Ebin told local reporters during a pressconference held at the South Point Diving Resort in Tampuan, Maasim.

He also said the potentials of putting up palm oil plantations inSarangani are great given its huge tracts of arable land.

The Malaysian minister said they are going send a team of technical peoplefrom Sabah to study the topography and soil conditions of the surroundingareas of Sarangani as a prelude to possible joint venture agreement withlandowners here.

With Ebrin were businessmen and government officials from the federalstate of Sabah, a region in Malaysia that is easily accessible by boatfrom Sarangani.

Sabah is host to large palm oil plantations.

Sarangani Governor Miguel Dominguez, who earlier welcomed the delegation,said the reciprocal visit of the Malaysian delegation is a boost to theprovince.

Former presidential assistant for Mindanao Paul Dominguez said whileactual investments will take time, the visit here of the Malaysians is astep towards improving trade as well as people to people relations betweenthe two neighboring areas.

The elder Dominguez, who was the country's first senior minister to theBrunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asia Growth Area (Bimp-Eaga),said the event also signaled the resumption of bilateral relations betweenthe two countries.

He said Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah, is one of the most developedcities in the Bimp-Eaga development region, which Sarangani could emulategiven its vast natural resources and "warm" residents.