8 deals signed in Duterte-Yacob bilateral meeting

STRONG PH-SINGAPORE TIES. President Rodrigo R. Duterte and Republic of Singapore President Halimah Yacob raise their glasses for a toast during the state banquet at the Malacañan Palace on September 9, 2019. Yacob’s five-day state visit marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Singapore. (Presidential Photo)

MANILA — Eight agreements were signed between the Philippines and Singapore during the state visit of Singapore’s first female President Halimah Yacob to Manila on Monday.

In his speech after his bilateral agreement with Yacob, President Rodrigo Duterte welcomed the signing of eight agreements in his speech.

“With the agreements signed today, we take the first of our eager steps toward the next half-century of our natural, mutually reinforcing and beneficial partnership,” Duterte said.

“With mutual trust, respect, and abiding amity, I am confident that we will achieve our shared goals and aspirations for our peoples,” he added.

Yacob, for her part, said that the deals signed “spend many salient areas of mutual interest” such as infrastructure development, sustainable urban solutions like water resource management, skills training and education cooperation in preparation for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, agri-trade, arts and culture, and data protection.

The following are eight agreements signed between the Philippines and Singapore:

* Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Department of Education (DepEd) and Temasek Foundation International and Nanyang Polytechnic International Program on Innovations and Teaching and Learning of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) with Design Thinking which provides for long-term collaboration, cooperation, and capability development of DepEd officials and the principles of teachers of DepEd high schools in STEM education.

* MOU between the Department of Agriculture and Enterprise Singapore on Agricultural Cooperation and Related Activities.

* MOU between Department of Trade and Industry of the Republic of the Philippines, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, and Skills Future Singapore Agency of the Republic of Singapore on cooperation on human capital development and rescaling and skills upgrading of workforce.

* MOU between the Development Bank of the Philippines and Infrastructure Asia Singapore on knowledge sharing to support infrastructure development.

* MOU between Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System and Public Utilities Board.

* MOU between the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth of the Republic of Singapore on cultural cooperation.

* MOU between Infrastructure Asia and Public-Private Partnership Center on assisting Philippine local implementing agencies with the development or implementation of PPP projects.

* MOU between the National Privacy Commission of the Republic of the Philippines and The Personal Data Protection Commission of the Republic of Singapore on Cooperation in Personal Data Protection.

Yacob is in the Philippines for a five-day state visit to mark the 50th anniversary of Philippine-Singaporean ties.