By Aileen Lor
During President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s two-day state visit to Brunei Darussalam on Tuesday, the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam governments signed at least three memoranda of understanding (MOUs) and one letter of intent.
The three MOUs signed aimed to increase tourism collaboration between the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam, as well as Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping (STCW) credentials, and to promote maritime cooperation.
Meanwhile, in the LOI, a memorandum of agreement on food security and agricultural cooperation was forged.
The MOU on tourism cooperation was signed by the Department of Tourism (DOT) and the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT) of Brunei Darussalam to generate cooperative tourism projects and increase tourist arrivals between the two countries. It also aims to support development in tourism, particularly Islamic tourism, and in promoting a friendly Muslim destination.
The MOU on STCW, on the other hand, allows the national agencies of both countries to recognise national certificates produced by the two nations’ focal agencies.
It also replaces and updates a previous MOU between the Philippines and Brunei from 2001.
The Philippines and Brunei also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on maritime collaboration, in which both countries pledged to expand partnership in a variety of sectors like pollution, skills training, research, and information exchange.
The LOI was signed by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Agriculture and Agrifood Department (AAD) of Brunei Darussalam’s Ministry of Agriculture. It emphasises the Philippines’ and Brunei’s desire to seek additional agricultural cooperation and collaboration for food security and sustainability.
