President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has expressed his gratitude to the People's Republic of China for its donation of 20,000 metric tons of urea fertilizers to the Philippines, saying its "act of magnanimity" solidifies the friendship and goodwill between the two neighboring countries. *CHINESE DONATION — President Marcos receives the Chinese government's donation of 20,000 metric tons of urea fertilizers in Valenzuela City, on June 16, 2023. (RTVM Screenshot)*


Marcos said this as he led the ceremonial turnover of China's donation to the Philippines at the National Food Authority (NFA) warehouse in Malanday, Valenzuela City, on Friday morning, June 16. In his speech, the President said China's donation was a solid gesture of friendship and goodwill in keeping with both countries' "long and historic" trade and cultural exchange history. He added that the donation resulted from the Philippines' request from all its international partners for fertilizer during the "crisis" when its prices increased due to supply chain problems. "China did not think twice and immediately came up," Marcos said. President Marcos recalled his conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his State Visit to China in January, where the latter told him that agriculture was a foundation of the Chinese economy. "At the very basic level, the government's main responsibility is to take care of its people, and a large part of that is to provide a good food supply for the people," he said. "That is where we had this meeting of the minds, and that is why I am not surprised that immediately, upon our request for any assistance in terms of fertilizer supply, China immediately understood the predicament that we're in," he added.

President Marcos describes China's donation of 20,000 MT of urea fertilizers to the Philippines as a "solid gesture of friendship and goodwill that is in keeping with our long and historic history of trade and cultural exchange." @manilabulletin (📸RTVM Screenshot) pic.twitter.com/zj6YgHsufY

— Argyll Cyrus Geducos (@argyll_mb) June 16, 2023

According to Marcos, China's donation will "tremendously" aid his administration's efforts to boost agricultural production in its pursuit of food security. He added that the donated goods would help Filipino farmers save money and spend their savings from production costs on other things that matter to them and their families. "We will make sure that the message of goodwill from our highly cherished donors will cascade to them and to the rest of our citizenry," Marcos said. Worth RMB Yuan 100 million, the donation is part of the grant provided in the Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation between the two Governments on April 25, 2019. According to Malacañang, the urea fertilizers will be sent off to regional delivery points across the country for distribution to farmers, thereby aiding them in production costs and generating savings for them in the process. Urea is widely used in agriculture as a fertilizer and animal feed additive. Its high nitrogen content of about 46 percent initiates vegetative growth and makes plants look lush. Urea fertilizer is a neutral white crystalline organic chemical compound that can adapt to almost all types of soil and crops.