Japan’s Kyoto Employers Association (KEA), one of Kyoto’s four major economic associations, is exploring opportunities in manufacturing, finance, real estate and services in the Philippines, a trade agency for the Manila government said on Tuesday.
The Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Osaka (PTIC-Osaka) said in an email several KEA companies, primarily small and medium enterprises (SMES), expressed interest in operating in the Philippines as part of a multi-location manufacturing hub strategy, aimed at strengthening business continuity, managing costs and addressing labor shortages in Japan, PTIC-Osaka said.
Given Japan’s demographic challenges—including a shrinking labor force and an aging population—many Japanese SMEs are actively evaluating expansion abroad.
“This is an opportunity for the Philippines to position itself to KEA companies at a time when many Japanese SMEs are actively evaluating expansion abroad,” the PTIC said.
The four-day high-level business mission from June 21 to 24, 2025, brought 11 senior executives and company presidents from Kyoto’s leading industries.
They held a business exchange with Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry executives and committed to connecting KEA firms with local SMEs through its SME Committee and the Philippines-Japan Business Council, PTIC-Osaka said.
The Kyoto mission also visited Creotec Philippines, a cutting-edge vocational training facility in Laguna that showcased the Philippines’ technical talent in electronics, automation, and industrial trades.
“This mission highlights our strategy to generate meaningful investments from Japanese SMEs—who comprise 99.7 percent of Japan’s economy—by positioning the Philippines as a strategic partner in co-developing Japan’s manufacturing supply chain and industrial ecosystem,” PTIC-Osaka Commercial Counselor and Director Michael Alfred Ignacio said.
PTIC said that at this stage, there are no formal investment or employment commitments yet, as this was KEA’s first ever official business mission to the Philippines.
“This initial engagement served as a strategic exploratory platform to open direct channels for future collaboration, build institutional and private-sector linkages, and position the Philippines as a competitive and trusted destination for Japanese SMEs,” PTIC said.
The Philippines presents a compelling proposition to Japan, given its demographic challenges, offering access to a skilled, young workforce and opportunities to co-locate manufacturing while retaining high-value research and development in Japan,” PTIC-Osaka said.
