“Women in Diplomacy” Launched at the GCHOP 2019, Highlights Dedication of Filipino Women Diplomats

The women Ambassadors of the Philippines and their male colleagues with Former Secretary of Foreign Affairs Delia D. Albert (second row, fifth from left)and Undersecretary for Administration J. Eduardo Malaya. (sixth from left). (DFA photo by Philip Fernandez)

MANILA 24 October 2019 — Former Secretary of Foreign Affairs Delia Domingo Albert launched the book “Women in Diplomacy: The Remarkable Ambassadors in the Philippine Foreign Service” at the sidelines of the Global Conference of Heads of Posts (GCHOP) on 08 October 2019 at New World Hotel Makati, Philippines. The book is a collaboration between the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Foreign Service Institute.

The book features the reflections of thirty-nine remarkable women Filipino diplomats who ventured into the diplomatic profession and reached the top of the career ladder as Ambassadors. With their focused and dedicated work, relating the interests of the Philippines with evolving global realities while balancing their traditional gender roles, their achievements are worth the recognition.

To enable the reader to gain a better understanding and appreciation of the individual essays, the book also discusses Philippine foreign policy directions from President Emilio Aguinaldo to President Rodrigo Duterte, the enabling environment that provides the possibility for Filipino women to participate in public service, and the work of the Department of Foreign Affairs in implementing the country’s foreign policy.

Former Secretary Delia Domingo Albert remarked that she drew inspiration to undertake the book project from an observation made by former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan when she chaired the United Nations Security Council in 2004, that he had met a number of "remarkable Filipino women diplomats" serving in various Philippine embassies around the world.

To date, from 1958 to 2018, a total of 90 women ambassadors have served and continue to serve in the Philippine Foreign Service. To include the many others who were not able to contribute to Volume 1, Former Secretary Albert announced that she has begun work on the second volume. END

Former Secretary Delia D. Albert with Undersecretary for Administration J. Eduardo Malaya, who is also the Chairperson of the Executive Committee of the Gender and Development of the Department. (DFA photo by Philip Fernandez)