Joint Statement
on the Occasion of the Signing of the Agreement
between Japan and the Republic of the Philippines
for an Economic Partnership

1. We, the Prime Minister of Japan, Junichiro Koizumi and the President of the Republic of the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, acknowledging fifty years of friendship that has developed into an enduring cooperative relationship, are fully determined to bring our cooperation to greater heights in order to contribute to the stability, security and prosperity of our two countries, the East Asia community and the international community as a whole.
2. We believe that a closer partnership between Japan and the Republic of the Philippines will accelerate economic development, promote the well-being of our peoples, contribute to the capacity-building of our countries and bring enhanced prosperity to the region.
3. We recognize that globalization presents many new economic and strategic challenges and opportunities and acknowledge the need to work together and to cooperate further to maximize the benefits of globalization. We, therefore, affirm our determination to strengthen our economic relationship based on the idea of "acting together and advancing together."
4. Along these lines, we reaffirm our commitment to the multilateral trading system and will continue the cooperation between our two countries to contribute to a successful conclusion of the WTO Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations.
5. Today, by signing the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of the Philippines for an Economic Partnership (hereinafter referred to as "the Agreement"), we have stepped forward to a new stage of our bilateral economic relationship. This represents another milestone in our continuing cooperation and collaboration setting a new chapter of our strategic partnership for mutual opportunity and growth.
6. The Agreement will enhance cooperation between Japan and the Philippines, enabling both countries to better reap the benefits of closer economic partnership while ensuring consistency with efforts to address Philippine development concerns as espoused in its medium term development plan, as well as Japan's policies on economic and financial cooperation, including its ODA Country Assistance Program for the Philippines.
7. The Agreement will strengthen the economic collaboration between our two countries by increasing the cross-border flows of goods, persons, investments and services. Furthermore, it provides for the protection of intellectual property rights, controlling anti-competitive activities, improvement of the business environment as well as cooperation in fields of mutual interest, such as human resource development, financial services, information and communications technology, energy and environment, science and technology, trade and investment promotion, small and medium enterprises, tourism, transportation, and road development.
8. Under the new economic partnership, we will endeavor to make the most of our respective competitive edge and promote the development of our economies which will bring about prosperity and stability to both of our countries and help lay the foundations for building an East Asian community.
9. We look forward to the implementation of the following programs and projects under the Japan-Philippines Common Strategies for Action, which will be periodically reviewed by the Sub-Committee on Cooperation established under the Agreement:

(i) Human Resource Development

• Japanese language training and other cooperation on movement of natural persons (nurses/caregivers)
• Human resource development in the field of education and training including further diffusion and improvement of quality of elementary and secondary education in the Philippines
• Cooperation for scholarships in higher educational institutions
• Cooperation for competency upgrading and entrepreneurship including assistance for social and economic empowerment of women

In addition to the above contents, the two countries will consider the possibility of the following cooperation;

• Capability enhancement for trainers and teachers
• Promotion of training and exchange programs for government officials
• Capacity building to strengthen the administration and management of the education sector

(ii) Financial Services

• An opportunity for enhancing capacity building through training courses for the regulation and supervision of financial institutions
• Cooperation in the field of finance-related statistics including capacity-building

(iii) Information and Communications Technology (ICT)

• Cooperation in the following fields under the "Asia Broadband Program"
  • Promotion of broadband technologies and services
  • Further development of network infrastructures for broadband
  • Promotion of standardization activities on network infrastructure
  • Cooperation to ensure the security of networks
  • Sharing of know-how on transition to the latest version of Internet Protocol (IP)
• Electronic commerce
  • Facilitation of the procedures of accreditation/recognition of certification authority
• Human resource development relating to ICT
  • Program to support ICT human resource development in the following areas under the "Asia IT Initiative"
    • Cooperation for the University of the Philippines IT Training Center (UP-ITTC)
    • Trainings for instructors of information processing engineer examinations and IT engineers
    • Trainings on ICT businesses in Japanese language
    • Support for implementation of the examination for information technology engineers
  • Cooperation under the "Asia Broadband Program" including the following areas:
    • ICT policy and regulations
    • Emerging technologies including satellite communications, mobile communications, broadband and internet technology, and others
  • Improvement of ICT skills and related administrative skills in the Philippine government in the following areas:
    • Cooperation on ICT policy
    • Cooperation on technology such as IP network
• Other areas of cooperation in the field of ICT
  • Cooperation through promotion activities for e-learning
  • E-government including e-passport project
  • Open-source software
  • Studying the feasibility of developing a business-matching system between the Philippine ICT industry and potential Japanese customers

In addition to the above contents, the two countries will consider the possibility of the following cooperation;

• Information networks security, including protection of personal data
• Pilot program on establishment and use of community e-center

(iv) Energy and Environment

• Technical cooperation in the field of energy such as the utilization of sustainable renewable energy for rural electrification
• Promotion of development of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects
• Promotion of information exchange for investment opportunities
• Human resource development in the fields of energy and environmental management
• Joint research and survey of its methodologies and other cooperation on environmental impact assessment of EPA
• Cooperation on development of the power sector by appropriate agencies in Japan

In addition to the above contents, the two countries will consider the possibility of the following cooperation;

• Cooperation on the implementation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) management program through the National Institute for Environmental Studies of Japan
• Cooperation on oil management including oil stockpiling
• Cooperation in the field of energy for the utilization of sustainable renewable energy as alternative fuels for transport
• Cooperation in the management of hazardous and solid waste
• Cooperation for the implementation of the Philippine Clean Water Act

(v) Science and Technology

• Cooperation for development and improvement of technologies in the field of livestock
• Cooperation in the field of agriculture and food industry including capacity building
• Survey and research on the multi-functionality of agriculture in ASEAN countries including the Philippines
• Assistance to counter disasters including floods and landslides through latest Japanese technologies

In addition to the above contents, the two countries will consider the possibility of the following cooperation;

• Cooperation in the field of forestry including capacity building
• Cooperation in the field of fishery including capacity building

(vi) Trade and Investment Promotion

• Cooperation through JETRO activities:
  • Investment promotion through operation of JETRO Business Support Center in the Philippines (BSCP) and Invest Japan Business Support Center (IBSC)
  • Trade promotion through Trade Tie-up Promotion Program and trade exhibitions and fairs
  • Supporting industry program
  • Offering of information on trade and investment
• Promotion of Philippine annual joint promotion activities such as organization of trade and investment missions, exhibitions, and other promotional activities through mechanisms including the ASEAN-Japan Centre
• Receiving of Philippine government officials to an appropriate agency
• Cooperation on institutional infrastructure for strengthened economic structure and industrial competitiveness
• Capacity building of government entities engaged in trade facilitation and/or investment promotion
• Cooperation related to the Philippine-Japan Energy Task Force, taking account of the Philippine proposals
• Cooperation between the Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) and the Philippine Export-Import Credit Agency (PhilEXIM) in the field of trade and investment insurance through, among others, training for PhilEXIM experts
• Cooperation between the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and relevant government agencies in the Philippines through, among others, training for experts
• Other cooperation which contributes to trade and investment promotion such as assistance in marketing of products and services

In addition to the above contents, the two countries will consider the possibility of the following cooperation;

• Development with the Board of Investments of a special program to retain, expand and diversify Japanese investments in the Philippines (RED Program)
• Scholarships for government and private sector individuals engaged in the development/promotion of trade and investments

(vii) Small and Medium Enterprises

• Introduction of KIGYO SHINDAN System for Philippine SME counselors

(viii) Tourism

• Promotion of the development of tourism, among others, through joint promotion activities through mechanisms including the ASEAN-Japan Centre
• Seminars and workshops for travel industry personnel and other service providers through mechanisms including the ASEAN-Japan Centre

(ix) Transportation

• Assistance for capacity building in the field of air transportation including aviation safety systems
• Cooperation on development of maritime transportation networks and maintenance of its safety and security as the economic infrastructure

In addition to the above contents, the two countries will consider the possibility of the following cooperation;

• Joint research and/or surveillance for cooperation on effective aviation security and maritime security
• Assistance for capacity building in other modes of transportation, such as rail and maritime transportation
• Cooperation on other related matters as decided by both sides

(x) Road Development

• Assistance for capacity building in the area of road development, such as highway planning

Signed in Helsinki on this ninth day of September 2006.

---

Back to Index