Dear Friends,
As we close the year and look forward to the holidays, it’s an opportune time to reflect on the year that has passed. As Australian Ambassador to the Philippines, allow me to highlight the major achievements of our Philippines-Australia relations as Strategic Partners in 2024.
Our partnership is built on a shared vision of a peaceful, stable and prosperous region. The question remains: are we on the right path to achieving this vision? The answer is a resounding yes, and it lies in the meaningful and substantial progress we’ve made together.
The Philippines ranked as Australia’s 20th largest two-way trading partner in 2023, with trade valued at P378 billion. While this is encouraging, there is room for growth – personally, I would love to see the Philippines become one of Australia’s top 10 largest trading partners – and for the Philippines to reach its ambition to be an upper middle-income economy by 2025.
This year, two key missions underscored our commitment to this goal. The first was a transnational education mission that brought together 21 Australian academic institutions with potential partners from the Philippines. I am proud to share that this mission resulted in 15 Memorandums of Understanding fostering closer collaboration to enhance education quality, promote knowledge sharing and strengthen capacity-building efforts in the Philippines. Soon, Australian courses in construction, refrigeration and air-conditioning, mechanical engineering, IT and training and assessment will be delivered in partnership with a Philippine TVET institution.
The second was the business mission in September that brought together 15 Australian executives representing A$1.7 trillion in assets and funds with Philippine senior government officials and conglomerates. This mission focused on promoting opportunities in the Philippine government’s key priority sectors: green energy transition, infrastructure and agribusiness and food. As a result, several funds and corporates have elevated the Philippines as a priority trade and investment partner and continue to engage with Philippine counterparts to pursue investment projects and partnerships. We look forward to more missions in 2025, focusing on agriculture and the digital economy.
On peace and stability, Australia remains a steadfast partner to the Philippines. For over 30 years, we have invested significantly in peace-building efforts in Muslim Mindanao and continue to strengthen our commitment to the region. Most recently, in November, we launched a new initiative with P78 million in Australian government support to enhance governance, community resilience and economic growth in the Bangsamoro region.
In response to external security challenges, Australia is enhancing its civil maritime cooperation with the Philippines to promote a region where sovereignty and international law are upheld and the marine environment is protected. As part of this partnership, Australia has delivered law of the sea courses to 628 Philippine government officials from 28 agencies, including 286 Philippine Coast Guard officers. Additionally, we continue to collaborate with the Philippines in protecting our oceans through initiatives like coral reef restoration and reducing marine plastic pollution.
Defense cooperation also saw significant progress with the inaugural Australia-Philippines Defense Ministers’ Meeting in November in Canberra. Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense, Richard Marles, and Philippine Secretary of National Defense, Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr., reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening multilateral defense collaboration for the collective security and stability of the Indo-Pacific. Looking ahead, we eagerly anticipate the second iteration of Exercise Alon in 2025, which will further enhance the complexity and interoperability of our armed forces.
Promoting sustainable economic growth and stability requires a commitment to inclusive development. This year, we launched the Australia-Philippines Development Partnership Plan 2024-2029, co-designed with over 85 Philippine partners. The plan outlines Australia’s focus on three key areas: supporting stability as a foundation for development, fostering inclusive and sustainable economic growth and strengthening resilience by partnering with Philippine institutions and communities.
As part of this commitment, we have introduced the five-year, P1.5-billion program in partnership with the Philippines’ Department of Social Welfare and Development, which will support poverty reduction and promote equal opportunities for all Filipinos. This is part of Australia’s broader commitment of over P4 billion annually for capacity building and development support in the Philippines.
Looking back, I am proud of what we have accomplished together amidst global uncertainties and challenges. Our partnership stands as a testament to what we can achieve by working together toward a shared vision.
As the year ends, I extend my heartfelt thanks to our friends and partners in the Philippines. We’ve achieved so much, and I look forward to even greater milestones in the years ahead. Happy holidays and here’s to a future of continued partnership and success.
* * *
HK Yu is the Australian Ambassador to the Philippines. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @AusAmbPH.