The World Economic Forum (WEF) on East Asia event this week begins a lineup of prestigious intergovernmental meetings and conferences that the country is booked to host until 2017.

This week alone, two events are scheduled to occur in Metro Manila, the other being the 10th annual ASEAN Finance Ministers’ Investors Seminar on May 20. WEF will run between May 21 and 23.

“This is the first time that the Philippines will host the World Economic Forum event,” said Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima during a May 15 press conference. “We take this as a recognition of the Philippines’ increasing role and importance in the regional economy. We also take this as a recognition of the good governance [policy] of President Aquino.”

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of Vietnam, and Vice-President U Nyan Tun of Myanmar have reportedly confirmed their attendance in the WEF event, along with about 600 leaders of business and civil society groups.

The WEF event this year will be followed by the year-long Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) between December 2014 and November 2015. At least 11 destinations across the country have been identified to host dozens of public and private sector meetings during APEC, said Guillermo Luz, consultant to the director-general of the national APEC organizing committee.

In 2016, the Philippines will host the ASEAN Tourism Forum, an annual gathering of tourism players in the region. The Philippines will be the chairman and consequently the host of ASEAN in 2017.