One small step to greater regional development

A JOURNEY of a thousand miles begins with a single step is a universal truth that resonates beyond the idea of travel. The Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu must have meant it to be deeper and wider than that, to apply to various developments that would certainly include the Davao City-General Santos-Bitung roll-on, roll-off route that President Rodrigo Duterte and Indonesian President Joko Widodo inaugurated on Sunday in Davao, the morning after the 30th Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit took place in Manila.

The new route is an important commitment that the Philippines, as host and chair of Asean 2017, committed to neighbor and fellow Asean founder Indonesia, when Mr. Duterte visited Jakarta in September last year, to lower the cost and shipping time of goods between the two countries. Certainly, it is one small but significant step the Philippines has made in contributing to greater regional development.