RP, South Korea to sign 10 trade and labor agreements
Posted on May 28th, 2009
The Philippines and South Korea celebrates the 60th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic relations this year, which President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo also declared as the “Philippines-Republic of Korea Friendship Year.†2009 also marks the 20th anniversary of ASEAN-Republic of Korea Dialogue Relations.
In line with this, the president will be visiting Korea, and she will be in Seoul starting May 30 to June 2, where the Philippines and South Korea will be signing 10 agreements on trade, energy, and labor, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
The president will travel to South Korea on May 30 and 31, upon the invitation of South Korean President Lee Myung Bak, and on June 1 and 2, she will be participating in the ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit in Jeju Island.
During this trip, five government-to-government agreements will be signed after the two leaders meet at the Blue House. These includes the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Employment Permit System (EPS), MOU on Labor and Manpower Development Cooperation, Notes on the Grant Aid for Rice Processing Complexes (RPCs), MOU on the Feasibility Study on the Multi-Industry Cluster (MIC) Program, and MOU on Agricultural Scientific and Technical Cooperation.
Philippine Labor Secretary Marianito Roque and South Korea Minister for Labor Lee Young-Hee will be the ones to sign the MOUs on EPS and Labor and Manpower Development Cooperation. The EPS allows skilled Filipino workers to avail of job opportunities in South Korea and renews the expired 2006 arrangement, while the second MOU is an institutional cooperation arrangement.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo and his South Korean counterpart Yu Myung Hwan will be signing the $13-million grant aid to construct RPCs in the provinces of Pangasinan, Bohol, and Davao Del Sur. They will also be sealing the deal on feasibility study on the MIC which pledges the conduct of a KOICA-funded feasibility study on the synergistic cooperation activity envisioned under the MIC. KOICA means Korea International Cooperation Agency.
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap and the Korean Rural Development Authority president will be signing an institutional cooperation agreement on agricultural cooperation.
Five government-to-private deals will also be signed after President Arroyo meets with the Filipinos in South Korea. This include the MOU on Information Exchange and Cooperation between the Philippine International Sisterhood and Twinning Association and the Korea Local Authorities Foundation for International Relations, MOU on Cooperation and Friendship between Benguet Province and Chungcheungbukdo Province, MOU between the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency on institutional cooperation and the Project Agreement between the DENR and the Korea Energy Economics Institute.
