JFC – FAQs

CanCham is a member of the JFC: What is the JFC?

    • The Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) is an informal group of foreign business associations in the Philippines
    • The group has no legal status as a corporate entity
    • The JFC members are foreign business associations registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the Philippines

 

Who are current members of the JFC?

    • American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (AmCham)
    • Australia-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (ANZCham)
    • Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc (CanCham)
    • European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (ECCP)
    • Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Inc. (JCCPI)
    • Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Inc. (KCCP)
    • Philippine Association of Multinational Companies Regional Headquarters, Inc. (PAMURI) 

 

What are the criteria to be JFC member?

    • There are no formal criteria for membership
    • In practice JFC members are foreign chambers of commerce associated with advanced industrialized countries that are also members of the OECD
    • European national chambers of commerce are represented by the ECCP and not members of JFC in their own right
    • New memberships are by invitation and agreement of all JFC current members

 

What are the main activities of JFC?

    • Sharing information about business activities, conditions, and concerns
    • Advocating shared positions with relevant government and other agencies
    • Arranging joint business networking events
    • Planning and implementing joint business-related projects

 

How are JFC business meetings conducted?

    • The Presidents and Executive Directors of JFC members meet monthly
    • There is no elected chair or continuing secretary for the monthly meetings
    • The responsibility to Chair a monthly meeting, to prepare the agenda, and to record minutes is rotated amongst all members in alphabetic order

 

Do JFC members all have the same business interests and priorities?

    • The interests, concerns and priorities of JFC members differ
    • In some cases interests, concerns and priorities may overlap and be shared by all
    • In other cases these may be concerned by some members but not by others
    • There are very few instances when JFC members have had opposing positions
    • Usually the JFC member with a specific interest will lead the JFC on that issue with other members supporting

 

Are advocacy positions supported unanimously by all JFC members?

    • Advocacy positions may be proposed by any JFC member to the group
    • One member prepares the proposed position, consults with all other members, and presents as a proposed JFC position to be signed by all the JFC Presidents
    • To be considered a JFC position, it has to be supported by at least five of the seven JFC members
    • If one or two members do not support the position supported by at least five members, this dissent is referred to the JFC position
    • JFC members can … and do … also present their advocacy positions unilaterally

 

Who is the spokesperson for JFC positions and for questions by the media?

    • There is no officially designated spokesperson for the JFC
    • If a spokesperson is deemed necessary for a specific issue or position, one of the Presidents of a JFC member is asked to be spokesperson for that question or issue

 

Who represents the JFC at official government hearings and consultations?

    • JFC is usually represented by a small group from two or three of the JFC members including at least one President who will be the lead speaker with others supporting
    • Formal JFC written positions are also submitted with these signed by all JFC Presidents

 

Does JFC cooperate with Philippine national business groups?

    • JFC cooperates in advocacy work of Philippine groups with common interests
    • Where there is a common interest, JFC usually prefers the Philippine business group to lead

 

Does JFC endorse political parties and/or candidates that are pro-business?

    • JFC does not endorse political parties and/or candidates
    • JFC may support pro-business policies propose by a political party or candidate
    • The JFC does not take positions on policies that are unrelated to business

 

Who pays for JFC activities?

    • JFC receives no direct financial support from any government
    • Salary and expense costs of officers and professional staff of JFC members engaged in JFC activities are paid by the applicable individual JFC members
    • JFC raises the revenue it needs during a year to support its activities by charging a fee for attendance of its major business networking events
    • The cost of non-project activities are paid using revenue raised with the networking events with no additional cost to JFC members
    • The cost of most major projects is shared amongst members with each member paying a fixed minimum plus an added contribution proportionate to membership revenue of the member

 

Who manages and controls JFC funds?

    • As JFC has no independent corporate status, it does cannot maintain a JFC account
    • As agreed with JFC, CanCham maintains a separate account for the JFC
    • All JFC revenue is credited to and payments made from this separate account
    • The JFC account is kept separate from CanCham’s own accounts
    • The JFC account audited as part of the annual audit of CanCham’s accounts

 

 Summarized by CanCham May 3, 2014