VP Duterte, Australian FM discuss role of education


Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte met with Australian Senator and Foreign Minister Penny Wong to discuss the importance of education in nation-building.

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(From left) Vice President Sara Duterte and Australian Senator and Foreign Minister Penny Wong (OVP photo)

In a Facebook post on Thursday, May 18, the official shared photos of her meeting with the Australian foreign minister.

“Napag-usapan namin ang kahalagahan ng edukasyon para sa personal na pag-unlad ng isang indibidwal at ang papel nito para maitaguyod ang mas matatag na bansa (We talked about the importance of education for the personal development of an individual and its role in bringing up a resilient country),” she wrote.

In the photos, Wong was seen signing what looked like the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) guestbook.

Wong visited the country from May 16 to 18 following an invitation from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to assess the current state of the Philippines’ and Australia’s bilateral relations.

As the former mayor of Davao City, the Vice President said she took the opportunity to thank the Australian government for the support it gave to boost the capacity of workers.

She shared that Davao City has more than 20 graduates of the Philippines-Australia Human Resource and Organizational Development Facility under the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID).

They also talked about the role of women in a country’s progress, Duterte said.

Wong was in the country to meet with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and some Cabinet officials to discuss economy, education, climate resilience, and peace programs.