Filipina Receives Vanuatu Presidential Medal

Vanuatu President Nikenike Vurobaravu awards Ms. Marylin Serrano with the Presidential Medal on 02 November 2022. (Canberra PCG photo)

CANBERRA, 10 November 2022 – Ms. Marylin Serrano was awarded the prestigious Presidential Medal by His Excellency Nikenike Vurobaravu, President of the Republic of Vanuatu, at a ceremony held at the Grand Hotel in Port Vila on 02 November 2022.

Ms. Serrano, who served as President of the Vanuatu International Women’s Group (IWG), was recognized for her long-standing, dedicated service to the community and in particular, for her notable role in advocating for women’s and children’s welfare in Vanuatu. Through the IWG, other international events and her individual endeavors, Ms. Serrano has been instrumental in raising funds for social projects across Vanuatu to help those in need.

The Presidential Medal of the Vanuatu Government is the highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the development and prosperity of the country and its people.

Ms. Serrano is the second Filipino to receive the award. Her husband, the Philippine Honorary Consul General in Vanuatu Mr. Florentino “Bong” Serrano received the same recognition in October 2020. Mr. and Ms. Serrano are the first couple to ever receive this distinction from the Vanuatu government.

Mr. and Ms. Serrano were also the first Filipinos to have been granted the honor of adoption by the Ifira tribe, the biggest in Vanuatu, and from where the current Prime Minister of Vanuatu belongs to. END

Ms. Marylin Serrano (standing 5th from left) at the Presidential Medal Awarding ceremony on 02 November with Vanuatu President Nikenike Vurobaravu (seated center) and other awardees. (Canberra PCG photo) 

For more information, visit https://www.philembassy.org.au, or https://www.facebook.com/PHinAustralia/.