MANILA – President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. characterized his brief visit to Saudi Arabia as a resounding success and a productive engagement. During his return speech following the visit to Riyadh on Saturday, the President highlighted a series of accomplishments that strengthened the Philippines’ commitment to the GCC and ASEAN nations’ partnership and presented the country as an attractive prospect for potential investors.
One of the key achievements the President underscored was the establishment of business-to-business agreements that are set to create more job opportunities for Filipino workers. These agreements promise to enhance employment prospects for the Filipino labor force.
Describing the ASEAN-GCC Summit held in Riyadh as a landmark event, President Marcos emphasized its historical significance as the first gathering of ASEAN and GCC Member States to address regional and international matters and discuss future cooperation.
The GCC member countries include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, while the ASEAN comprises Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
President Marcos remarked, “The Summit provided an opportunity to project the Philippines’ long-standing promotion of a rules-based international order, which is essential to the maintenance of peace, security, and stability in our regions, which sit astride two of the most vibrant sea-lanes of trade and communications in the world.”
The President announced that the Summit yielded a US$120-million Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish a training facility in the Philippines with a capacity for 500 trainees to upskill Filipino workers in the construction industry.
“This facility is designed to train a minimum of 3,000 Filipinos annually, with more than 15,000 skilled workers ready for deployment over the next five years,” President Marcos stated.
Furthermore, three additional business-to-business agreements were discussed between Saudi and Philippine human resource companies. These agreements span multiple industries, including healthcare, hotel and restaurant services, and maintenance and operations, and are projected to generate over USD 4.2 billion in investments and provide an extra 220,000 job opportunities for Filipinos in the coming years.
President Marcos also addressed the successful resolution of bilateral issues with Kuwait during the Summit, including the lifting of the deployment ban on Filipino workers.
“We are now poised to return to a state of normalcy in our relations with the Kuwaiti government,” President Marcos affirmed.
The President expressed optimism after engaging with the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, characterizing their discussions as “very encouraging” and anticipates capital investments committed by the Saudi Arabian government to the Philippines.
“We discussed matters of shared interest for our two nations, and I expressed my hope to maintain the momentum of high-level exchanges as we expand cooperation in key areas beneficial to both our peoples,” President Marcos stated.
Reiterating his dedication to further the Philippines’ interests and strengthen partnerships with allied nations, President Marcos emphasized, “Let me assure you that we will continue to advance our national interests as we further expand our partnerships abroad.”
During the Summit, President Marcos stressed the need for increased cooperation in vital sectors, including energy and food security, the improvement of logistic chains, and the safeguarding of the rights and welfare of Filipino workers.
President Marcos arrived at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City at 2:50 p.m. on Saturday.
