By Rowena dela Fuente (Eagle News Service)
BUSAN, South Korea, Dec. 12 (ENS) — South Korea underscored its continuing official development assistance (ODA) to the Philippines, as it vowed to provide ODA loans for more development projects in the provinces.
The position was made by South Korean President Park Geun-Hye during her bilateral meeting with President Benigno Simeon Aquino III, at the sidelines of the 25th Commemorative Summit of the Association of South East Asian Nation or ASEAN and the Republic of Korea (ROK) in Busan, South Korea.
President Park said the assistance would include “the Jalaur River multi-purpose project in Iloilo, and the further development of the Laguindingan and Puerto Princesa airports.”
According to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) “the total active official development assistance (ODA) loans of South Korea, as of December 2013 was US$524.76 million, while total grants stood at US$83.96 million.”
NEDA also reported that ROK remains one of the leading foreign investors in the Philippines in 2013, ranking 5th, despite the decline in its approved investments by 13%.
NEDA statistics showed that 72% of ROK investment pledges in 2013 were intended for manufacturing.
Korean businessmen also funneled their investments in the sectors of electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply, and accommodation and food service activities.
During the meeting, Communications Secretary Herminio ‘Sonny’ Coloma said President Aquino also “recognized the substantial investments that Korean companies have brought into the country, particularly Hanjin and Phoenix Semiconductor Philippines Corporation.”
The two leaders also affirmed the two countries’ agreement to ensure the smooth implementation of the employment permit system for Filipino workers in Korea, as well as strengthening of people-to-people exchanges.
President Aquino, during the meeting, noted that South Koreans now comprise the largest contingent of tourists in the Philippines.
According to statistics from the Department of Tourism, “Korean tourists make up nearly a quarter of total tourist arrivals annually”, surpassing the Philippine government’s target of 1 million arrivals from ROK, with 1,165,789 arrivals in 2013.
