04 January 2016 – Philippine Consul General Julius Caesar A. Flores lectured on the role of the Philippine Consulate General in Xiamen in relation to the overall Philippine presence in China to a group of 25 Ateneo de Cebu high school students and five faculty members who comprised the pioneering Ateneo Hearters Adventures (AHA) program in China.

The AHA program is a 35-day academic immersion program with the aim of deepening and strengthening the students’ appreciation of China as well as understanding their ancestral roots in Fujian.

Consul General Flores highlighted the many facets of the work of the Consulate General covering political, economic and public diplomacy functions, relative to other posts in China and in greater context, in the Philippine foreign service. The Consul General encouraged the to join the Philippine foreign service and advised them that it would require much preparation which they could begin by focusing on their studies.

The Consul General underscored that Xiamen/Fujian is has the deepest historical and cultural linkages with majority of the overseas Chinese in the Philippines. This is exemplified by the 30-year sister-city partnership between Xiamen and Cebu.

This is another excellent accomplishment of a people-to-people exchange program which should be encouraged to nurture friendship and understanding between the Philippines and China. END