PH, Colombia Hold 4th Bilateral Consultation Mechanism Meeting

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Enrique A. Manalo (left), and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Luz Stella Jara (right) exchange handshakes after convening the 4th Philippines–Colombia Bilateral Consultation Mechanism Meeting. (photos by DFA OSCR)

28 November 2018 – The Philippines and Colombia convened their 4th Bilateral Consultation Mechanism (BCM) meeting on 23 November 2018 at the Diamond Hotel in Manila.

The Philippine and Colombian delegations were headed by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Enrique A. Manalo and Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Luz Stella Jara, respectively.

During the meeting, the Philippines welcomed the recent opening of the Embassy of Colombia in Manila and expressed its willingness to consider opening the Embassy of the Philippines in Colombia.

The two countries reaffirmed their excellent bilateral ties and agreed to enhance cooperation across a broad range of areas, such as security; climate change and disaster risk reduction and management; promoting culture, tourism, and sports; exchanging research and study opportunities through the Foreign Service Institute; and addressing consular issues.

Both sides agreed to pursue negotiations on the pending agreements on Environment, Disaster Risk Reduction and Management, and Visa Waiver, and agreed to formalize the exchange programs for the youth with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the matter.

Both sides further committed to deepen their bilateral economic cooperation by exploring trade and investment opportunities in sectors such as information technology and business process outsourcing, Orange Economy, electrical products, and creative industries.

The Philippines and Colombia also exchanged views on regional developments in Asia and Latin America including updates on Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Pacific Alliance.

Both sides agreed on the need to sustain cooperation in multilateral and inter-regional fora, such as the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC), and the United Nations.

Both sides reaffirmed the importance of the BCM in further expanding and deepening bilateral ties between the two countries, reviewing the agreed action points, and exploring new areas and forms of cooperation.

Colombia expressed its appreciation to the Philippines for the organization of the 4th BCM in Manila. The two sides agreed to convene the 5th BCM in Colombia in 2019. END