11 September 2014 – “The Philippines’ inclusion in the 8th Seoul Official Development Assistance (ODA) International Conference on September 02 hosted by Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) is a testament to Korea’s commitment to the country’s development,” Philippine Ambassador Raul S. Hernandez said.
Ambassador Hernandez represented the Philippines at the Conference held at Lotte Hotel which examined ODA’s important role in supporting the efforts of developing countries to attain socio-economic development, and the fundamental issues of the prerequisites to its sustainability and inclusivity: good governance and institution-building.
The Conference sought to highlight the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation that received the support of governments, private sector and civil society during the 4th High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan in 2011. The Busan Partnership emphasizes partnerships for development and ownership of development priorities by developing countries.
A representative from the Philippines, Mr. Jaime Faustino, Program Director of Economic Reform and Development Entrepreneurship at the Asia Foundation, gave a lecture on development entrepreneurship, a model he conceptualized, to assist development agencies in introducing transformative institutional change to achieve socio-economic development.
The development entrepreneurship model is currently being implemented in Cambodia, Thailand and Bangladesh. In the Philippines, this model is being implemented in the areas of education and disaster risk reduction management.
Since 2007, the ODA Conference has been held annually in Seoul to share South Korea’s development experience and to discuss issues in international development cooperation.
The Republic of Korea (ROK) is an important partner in the Philippines’ economic development. Development cooperation between the Philippines and Korea started in 1988. Small technical assistance was provided to the country in 1990 and the first loan was extended the following year.
As of 2013, the ROK is the Philippines’ 7th largest source of ODA amounting to US$ 741 million. The Jalaur Multipurpose River Project worth US$ 207 million and the modern Rice Processing Complex worth US$ 3.325 million in Sta. Barbara, Pangasinan are some of the projects that serve as a testament to the successful and enduring partnership between the two countries. END