Marcos, Singapore PM Wong vow deeper bilateral ties
President Marcos and Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong vowed to deepen bilateral cooperation in trade and investments, renewable energy, climate change, humanitarian assistance and digital leadership, among others, as part of efforts to ensure stability in Southeast Asia.
The two leaders made the commitment on the first day of Wong’s official two-day visit to Manila on Wednesday.
In a joint statement in Malacañang, Mr. Marcos and Wong extolled their nations’ vibrant, enduring and dynamic relations as founding members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
The Singaporean leader’s trip to Manila was his first bilateral visit since he was reappointed in May. He and the President also met at the Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur last week.
“In our bilateral meeting just now, Prime Minister Wong and I had extensive follow-through discussions on the results of the Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur last week, and we exchanged views on what we can further do together to make Asean communities stronger and more resilient,” Mr. Marcos said.
‘Never been better’
He and Wong had “detailed discussions on priority areas of bilateral cooperation that yield tangible benefits for the Philippines and for Singapore, both immediate and in the longer term.”
Wong said relations between the two nations had “never been better.”
“It is a partnership that has been carefully nurtured over the decades by successive generations of leaders and officials. It is built on a high degree of mutual trust and respect, and it has enabled mutually beneficial cooperation over a wide range of areas,” he said.
The President cited the digital leadership program between the Civil Service Commission and the National University of Singapore that sought to “accelerate digital leadership and transformation across the civil service.”
Wong said Singapore would continue to support the Philippine capacity-building efforts in the civil service through its digital leadership program.
“We are already stepping up human resource development cooperation in various fields, including on digitalization. For example, as the President said just now, the National University of Singapore has developed a leadership program to advance the Philippine Civil Service Commission’s digital transformation agenda. The Masyak Foundation has also been active in the health care space in Taguig City,” he said.
As to trade and investments, he noted, “Singapore has consistently been one of the top investors in the Philippines, and that testifies to the confidence that businesses have in your economy. We have also begun cooperation in new areas like sustainability and new technologies.”
“[W]e are now one of the largest foreign investors in the Philippines… Likewise, Philippine companies have also steadily grown their presence in Singapore,” he said.
Climate action
Both leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to collectively mitigate the impact of climate change by working together on a carbon credits mechanism in line with Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement.
Wong noted how the two countries had taken the important first step by signing a memorandum of understanding on carbon credits collaboration.
“Our officials are working now towards finalizing a legally binding implementation agreement that’s aligned with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. This will facilitate commercial participation in carbon credits projects, which can spur technology transfer, green investments and create good jobs,” he added.
