Reception Hall, Malacañan Palace, | Statement below |Audio | http://www.pcoo.gov.ph/pnoy/PNOY%20Speech%2005Dec2013.mp3 | Your Excellency President Thein Sein of Myanmar, members of the Myanmar delegation, members of the press, ladies and gentlemen: On behalf of the Filipino people, allow me to welcome Your Excellency and the Myanmar delegation to the Philippines. We are delighted to have this opportunity to return the warm hospitality that we received last June, when President Thein Sein graciously hosted us during my official visit to Myanmar for the World Economic Forum on East Asia. This morning, the President and I engaged in fruitful discussions to advance cooperation between our countries, towards strengthening the meaningful relationship our nations share. Myanmar was one of the countries that reached out to us in the wake of Typhoon Yolanda, and I thanked the President for his message of sympathy and solidarity for our countrymen who were victims of this calamity. In particular, I expressed our deepest gratitude for the Myanmar Government's donation of $100,000 in humanitarian aid, and for the seven tons of relief goods flown in by the Myanmar Defense Services. Tomorrow, His Excellency, the President, and his delegation will fly to Cebu to show support for our relief efforts. He will bring with him a team of doctors and two tons of relief goods. Again, allow me to reiterate how grateful we are for the support that Myanmar has given to the Philippines. We also discussed the historic developments in Myanmar under President Thein Sein's leadership, particularly the democratic and economic reforms that he has instituted. These reforms include the holding of free elections, the release of political prisoners, dialogue with the opposition, the expansion of political rights, and the promulgation of new economic laws such as the new Foreign Investment Law. These herald a new chapter in Myanmar's history. The Philippines supports these initiatives and has offered assistance on capacity building through technical cooperation. We have also offered technical assistance to the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC), as well as training courses to relevant agencies on entrepreneurship, culture, ecotourism, culinary arts, agriculture and fisheries, food processing and preservation, and gender issues. Given that peace is one of our countries' mutual concerns, President Thein Sein and I shared our experiences on the peace processes within our individual nations. To further our defense cooperation, I have appointed a resident defense attaché to Myanmar. Since bilateral trade between the Philippines and Myanmar has increased, we explored opportunities to maximize the economic potential of our countries. In pursuing a stronger partnership in this area, we seek not only the benefit to our economies, but also the benefit to our peoples. Earlier, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Trade and Investment and agreed to continue discussions on establishing a Joint Trade Commission and concluding a Double Taxation Agreement. We also witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce, which will establish a bilateral business forum. By facilitating linkages with businessmen from both our countries, this forum will serve as a mechanism to match Philippine businesses with the business opportunities in Myanmar, and vice versa. (C O N T ... http://www.pcoo.gov.ph/speeches2013/speech2013_dec05.htm) ***

• published: 05 Dec 2013
• views: 56