President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has expressed interest in sourcing rice from Cambodia and expanding commercial aviation between the Philippines and Cambodia. The President made these remarks during a bilateral meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet on the sidelines of the 43rd ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia on September 7, 2023.
President Marcos sees the meeting as the beginning of enhanced cooperation between the two countries. He emphasized the potential for growth and partnership, stating, “I am a great believer in multilateral discussions but I also give equal importance to bilateral arrangements that we might do. Once again, I’m very happy to have had this exchange and I think, as I said, we’ve already identified so many areas that we can start off with.”
One of the areas of focus for the Philippines is strengthening its relationship with Cambodia in terms of food security, trade and commerce, and people-to-people exchanges. The President highlighted the importance of ensuring food sufficiency, particularly for rice, following recent typhoons that have greatly affected local rice production. The Philippines intends to request the Cambodian government to ease the terms and conditions for rice importers in the Philippines in order to ensure a steady supply of the staple.
Notably, the Philippines imported approximately 2,500 tons of rice from Cambodia in May this year through business-to-business sales deals between Khmer Foods company and rice importers. This marked a significant milestone as it was the first time the Philippines imported a substantial amount of rice from Cambodia since the passage of the Rice Tariffication Law in 2019. The law liberalized rice trade in the Philippines, allowing private entities to import rice from any country, subject to compliance with sanitary and phytosanitary requirements and import duties.
Cambodian officials have expressed their goal of capturing one percent of the market of imported rice in the Philippines by 2024. They are encouraging stakeholders to sustain and increase rice exports to the Philippines.
In addition to rice trade, President Marcos and Prime Minister Manet have also agreed to expand direct flights between the Philippines and Cambodia. With improvements in the Covid-19 situation and the easing of travel restrictions, both leaders see an opportunity to increase tourism and strengthen cultural, educational, and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
President Marcos praised the contributions of overseas Filipino workers and teachers who have gone abroad, including to Cambodia. He expressed pride in their ability to assist allies and partners in terms of cultural exchange.
The proposed collaboration between the Philippines and Cambodia in rice trade and aviation signifies their commitment to bolster bilateral relations and deepen economic and cultural ties.
