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THE Philippines is looking to enhance its economic ties with Malawi and Namibia, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said, as he welcomed the envoys of the two African countries.
Marcos met with Malawi Ambassador Kwacha Chisiza and Namibia Ambassador Herman Pule Diamonds during their presentation of credentials in Malacañang on Thursday.
In his remarks, Marcos said that the Philippine government is happy to share knowledge with the Malawi government on improving their agricultural sector, especially on enhancing rice production level.
He urged Chisiza to send their technicians, scientists and actual practitioners to the Philippines for them to see the country’s research and techniques in rice and corn production and other efforts to enhance the agricultural sector, which can be developed in their country.
“So, if we can get it started, Your Excellency, I think it would be of great benefit to both our countries because generally, what flows from this kind of partnership is with — is straight, will come from that and we are, of course, always looking to increase our trade with all our partners,” Marcos said.
“So, again, the future is ripe with opportunity. I think it is a good time to take that opportunity for Malawi and for the Philippines together,” the Chief Executive added.
For his part, Chisiza told Marcos that he appreciated the President’s warm welcome in receiving his credentials as he hopes to stay longer in the Philippines to further strengthen the bilateral relations between the Philippines and Malawi.
Chisiza said that there are a lot of common areas in which the Philippines and Malawi can benefit from one another.
“We see a lot of interest in the agriculture sector that the Philippines has and our economy in Malawi is predominantly dependent on agriculture. We want [to learn] about the Philippines and large quantities of rice production which in our country, it is the second staple food,” Chisiza said.
Chisiza shared that about “Malawi Vision 2063,” which focuses on three important pillars: agriculture productivity and commercialization; industrialization; and urbanization as he invited President Marcos to consider visiting their country in his future official trips.
Aside from enhancing rice production levels, Chisiza said that the Malawi government is also interested in student exchange between their country and the Philippines as he emphasized that they can learn a lot from moral and technical expertise in the Philippines.
“We see a lot of universities in the Philippines. One of the areas that we are focusing on, hopefully, we can have Malawi students come and visit here, who also like to have more technical expertise from the Philippines coming to Malawi,” Chisiza said.
“So, we’re already — that is a very good synergy between our countries,” the envoy added.
Comprehensive ties
Meanwhile, the government of Namibia and the Philippines are now exploring more comprehensive bilateral ties as they agreed to enhance their common areas, especially on trade and industry, agriculture, technical cooperation, and the welfare of their nationalities.
“What is left to us now is for us to find those complementarities. Those areas that we can help each other,” Marcos told Diamonds.
The President said that the Philippines has a lot to offer to the government of Namibia in terms of helping them develop their agricultural sector, especially since the International Rice Research Institute is located in the country.
He said that the Philippines also has its own rice institute and educational institutions that are doing research on agriculture and agriculture development in the Philippines.
“So, there is a great deal of knowledge,” he said. “We take pride in the fact that many of the agriculturists and agronomists around Southeast Asia trained with us and we can claim credit for some of the success that they are enjoying now. So, I think that is something that we could certainly look into.”
For his part, Diamonds told Marcos that they are also interested in further developing the cooperation between the Philippines and Namibia in terms of trade and investment.
Diamonds said that the government of Namibia is also considering having intensified technical cooperation with the Philippines, saying that there are some technological advances in the Philippines that they do not have yet in their country.
“So, my task is to see how we can perhaps, maybe, turn this around and make more space for us to cooperate [in terms of] trade and investment. So, this is the reason why we are here. … So, I was the one saying look here we have to diversify. And that is precisely what I’m looking at coming,” Diamonds said.
“So, we are mostly in those areas. We also have the same challenges. As the Philippines, [there are] technologies, which we do not have. So, this is also an area where we can see technical cooperation,” he added.
The ambassador, who is currently based in Kuala Lumpur, also expressed his appreciation for the Philippine government in ensuring the welfare of the overseas Filipino workers and the Filipino community in Namibia.
Responding to Namibia’s observation about Filipino workers abroad, Marcos took pride in the Filipinos’ hospitality as he emphasized that they are very industrious employees around the world.
“We’re very proud of our overseas workers. They do a great deal for our country and they have polished and made our reputation all over the world and again, we’re very proud of them,” he said.
— Catherine S. Valente
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