The Philippines and South Korea are aiming to strengthen their tourism engagement with the former expressing Manila's "keen interest" in revitalize its membership in the Tourism Promotion Organization for Asia Pacific Cities (TPO).
Philippine Ambassador to South Korea Ma. Theresa Dizon-De Vega met with Ambassador Woo Kyoung-ha, Secretary General of the TPO, to discuss strengthened tourism engagement between the the two countries through the TPO Secretariat. They had a meeting on Jan. 16.
According to De Vega, Woo, who is the new Secretary General of the TPO, is "currently undertaking initiatives to promote the organization and to reach out to its members."
During the meeting, the Filipino diplomat conveyed the City of Manila’s keen interest to revitalize its membership with the organization.
"He said that the Philippines is very important because the City of Manila is one of its founding members and has a seat in the executive board composed of 14 members," De Vega said in a statement.
De Vega also noted that the TPO plays a significant role in encouraging tourism engagement among cities in the region, adding that keeping the people’s interest in travel even during the pandemic will redound to more robust tourism once the situation normalizes.
De Vega also met with Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) President Hyuk-Sang Sohn on Jan. 18 to discuss ways to strengthen the development cooperation partnership between the two nations.
She emphasized the importance that the Philippines accords to KOICA and how beneficial the partnership with KOICA is in furthering the Philippine human capacity development agenda, especially through projects in agriculture, rural community development, strengthening local governance, and climate resilience.
She also expressed that KOICA has been integral in the improvement of digital governance in the Philippines, including through funding Philippine KOICA scholars on e-governance, agriculture, and climate management.
The KOICA, De Vega further said, is forging a very innovative path in terms of smart farming and rice production that complements the Philippine goals of developing food security, something that was brought to light in the onset of the logistical challenges brought by the pandemic.
President Sohn, on the other hand, conveyed that the Philippines remains the most critical and strategic partner of KOICA in the region in terms of volume and manpower.