THE PHILIPPINES and Brunei Darussalam further strengthened their four-decade-old bilateral relations, signing on Tuesday at least three memoranda of understanding (MOUs) and one letter of intent (LOI) covering tourism, maritime cooperation, seafaring, and agriculture.
The signing of the agreements was witnessed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah of Brunei.
Marcos is in Brunei until Wednesday for a two-day state visit.
According to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), the MOU on tourism cooperation aims to generate cooperative tourism projects and increase tourist arrivals between the two countries.
It also aims to support niche tourism development, particularly in the area of Islamic tourism and the promotion of Muslim-friendly destinations.
Meanwhile, the MOU on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) certificates allows national agencies of both countries to recognize the national certificates issued by their respective focal agencies.
It also replaces and updates an MOU between the Philippines and Brunei signed in 2001.
An MOU on maritime cooperation was also signed between the two Southeast Asian neighbors to further cooperation on wide-ranging areas, including pollution, skills training, research, and information sharing.
The LOI, on the other hand, aims to explore further cooperation and collaboration in the field of agriculture for food security and sustainable agriculture between the two countries.
After Brunei, the President is set to undertake a working visit to Singapore, where he is expected to grace the 21st International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue, becoming the first-ever Filipino president to address the key defense forum on May 30-31. (Darryl John Esguerra)
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