By Kim Se-jeong
More than six decades ago — 61 years ago to be exact — the Philippines made what the incumbent foreign minister described a “modest contribution” to keep peace and democracy on the Korean Peninsula.
Now South Korea is repaying its debt by offering development assistance to the country.
Alberto G. Romulo, the country’s top diplomat who was in Korea last week acknowledged Korea’s contributions and expressed his gratitude.
“Korea is the biggest ODA (overseas development assistance) donor to the Philippines,” the foreign minister told reporters on Jan. 11 at the Korean War Memorial in Seoul.
His visit was to belatedly commemorate the 60th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950.
Roughly 7,430 young Filipino men were dispatched, among whom 112 were killed.
According to Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, between 1991 and 2010, a total of $75 million was donated to the Philippines.
In 2010 alone, approximately $1.3 million was offered to train people, to build rice processing facilities and educational facilities, and to modernize old buildings.
Minister Romulo came only one month after President Benigno Aquino III’s visit, demonstrating the viability of bilateral exchanges between the two countries.
On the economic front, bilateral trade volume has only grown, to reach $4 billion last year.
As the Philippine’s fifth largest trade partner, Korea exports semi-conductors, automobiles and chemical products; and imports semi-conductors, steel and agricultural products.
When it comes to people-to-people exchanges, both have an illuminating profile.
Korean tourists are the highest in number in the country — 500,000 per year. The Philippine’s domestic economy is heavily dependent on tourism.
South Korea is home to roughly 50,000 Filipinos, who have come mainly for menial jobs.
The minister underscored the security of citizens in each country.
Asked how North Korea’s military provocation affected him in terms of the security of Filipinos, he replied, “It has passed.”
And he said to be sure that the South Korean government will do its best to make sure of the security of the people in the country.
North Korea fired shells onto Yeonpyeong Island last November, killing four.
It was the first military attack on the South’s territory since the Korean War, and was extensively covered by foreign media.
In regards to the safety of Koreans in the Philippines, the minister said, the government is pooling its resources to maintain a safe atmosphere so that not only do people come to visit but also come back for multiple trips.
South Korean residents and tourists in the Philippines are often targets of organized or isolated crimes.
During his three-day visit Romulo met with Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan to discuss the Multi-Industry Cluster (MIC).
MIC is an initiative, aiming to boost sustainable agricultural development in the Philippines.
Steered by the Philippines’ Department of Agriculture (DA), MIC is expected to increase farm production to boost the manufacturing sector, to increase employment, and to establish a solid financial system in rural areas of the country.
Berna Romulo Puyat, the undersecretary of the DA, was once quoted by a local newspaper as saying, “It was worthwhile to note that in South Korea, MIC led to productive synergy between agriculture, infrastructure, manufacturing and knowledge-based industries.
The same effect could be achieved if we adopt it in the Philippines.”
A year-long feasibility study for MIC is currently underway, expected to be completed by March.
The study funded by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), which donated $1.1 million towards it, will assess program feasibility and choose a pilot site.
The minister encouraged Korean companies to take part in his country’s national development projects.
Through the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan between 2010 and 2016, the Philippine government is trying to lay foundations for future economic development, and he hoped Korean companies would take part through public-private partnership.
He supported the use of nuclear energy, expressing his hope to work with Korean partners.
The Philippines has no nuclear power plants in operation but the minister has advocated them as a power source, as the demand for energy is growing rapidly.
The government recently invited International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) officials to review and assess the possible rehabilitation of a plant that was completed in 1984 in Bataan.
Yukiya Amano, the IAEA director, has assured Romulo that it’ll help the Philippines, if it decides to favor the nuclear power plant.
Once an opponent of nuclear power energy himself the minister argued in the given situation, pursuing nuclear energy isn’t a matter of preference but of necessity.