24 January 2014- His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden arrived in the Philippines today. His Majesty’s arrival at the airport was received by Education Secretary Brother Armin Luistro, European Affairs Assistant Secretary Maria Zeneida Angara Collinson, Non-resident Philippine Ambassador to Sweden Bayani Mercado and Mr. J. Rizal Pangilinan, Regional Director of the World Organization for the Scout Movement.

King Carl XVI Gustaf will be the Guest of Honor at the Invitational Peace Jamboree of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines in their centenary year. His Majesty is the Honorary Chairman of the World Scout Foundation. The WSF raises funds for various scouting projects worldwide, including the Ticket to Life project in the Philippines.

Education Secretary Brother Armin Luistro is a mandated member of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines. As Education Secretary, Brother Armin Luistro leads the 2 million strong young Filipino scout members in the country. The Boy Scouts of the Philippines has the third biggest scout membership in the world, following the Boy Scouts of America and Boy Scouts of Indonesia.

His Majesty will be in the Philippines from January 24 to 26. His Majesty’s itinerary includes a call on the President, who is the country’s Chief Scout as mandated by R.A. 7278 and a visit at the Coconut Palace with Vice-President Jejomar C. Binay, concurrently the National President of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines, hosting a dinner in honor of His Majesty.

His Majesty will also visit Tacloban to see the various projects of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines and other related projects implemented by the Swedish Government through the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan. END