PH, Belarus Senior Agri Officials Explore Areas of Cooperation
The Philippine delegation led by Department of Agriculture Undersecretary Waldo Carpio (7th from left) and composed of officials from the Department of Agriculture, Department of Trade and Industry – Philippine Trade and Investment Center Moscow, the Philippine Embassy in Moscow and representatives from the Philippine Honorary Consulate in Minsk, Belarus were received warmly by officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Belarus, led by Mr. Ivan Smilhin, Deputy Minister of Agriculture. (Photo by Y. Shutrova, PHCG Minsk)
MOSCOW 03 January 2018 – A Philippine delegation headed by Department of Agriculture (DA) Undersecretary Waldo Carpio visited Minsk, the capital city of Belarus, to explore areas of cooperation in the field of agriculture.
The mission was spurred by the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte to enhance relations with the Eastern European country.
The delegation met with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of Belarus on 10 December 2018 to meet with counterparts headed by Deputy Minister Ivan Smilhin. This is the first high-level meeting between the Philippines and Belarus on agriculture.
Aside from government officials, also present were private sector representatives from Molochny Mir, a company supplying milk products to the Philippines, and Santa Bremor, one of the largest fish processing companies in Eastern Europe that is interested in importing tuna from the Philippines.
After the meeting, the delegation visited the facilities of milk company Molochny Gostinets to learn about best practices in dairy production. Belarus is the world’s sixth largest exporter of milk due largely to its strong industrial processes.
The team also paid a visit to one of the factories of Minsk Tractor Works, maker of the famous “Belarus” line of tractors, to discuss opportunities in cooperation on farm mechanization.
“We are pleasantly surprised to see so much potential for cooperation with Belarus,” said Undersecretary Carpio. “We are excited to continue discussions and come up with concrete plans in the near future,” he added.
Also part of the DA delegation were International Affairs Division Head Dr. Maria Araceli Escandor, European Desk Officer Kristine Yap, and Agricultural Attaché for Europe Jose IC Laquian. They were joined by Jeffrey Valdez and Catherine Alpay of the Philippine Embassy in Moscow’s Economic Section, and Kristine Umali of the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Moscow. END
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Left photo: The Philippines and Belarusian senior agriculture officials, Undersecretery Carpio (right) and Deputy Minister Smilhin (left) pose for a photo after the meeting. Right photo: Philippine and Belarusian officials and representatives from various industries meet and discuss the opportunities for deepening PH-BLR economic ties in the agricultural sector. (Photos by Y. Shutrova, PHCG Minsk)
Philippine officials are treated to a tour of the processing and packaging facility of Molochny Gostinets, one of Belarus’ top exporters of dairy products. (Photo by C. Alpay)
Philippine delegation visits the office of Minsk Tractor Works, the state-run corporation which manufactures and exports tractors. (Photo by C. Alpay)