The Official Website of the Philippine Embassy in Seoul, Korea

PHILIPPINE EMBASSY CONDUCTS YEAR-END EVALUATION AND OPERATIONAL RETOOLING 2023

PR MTD 178 2023

Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega leads the Philippine Embassy’s Year-End Evaluation and Operation Retooling 2023 on 27 December 2023. Section heads and heads of attached agencies present accomplishment and plans under portfolios. Under the one country team approach, the Philippine Embassy team also identifies opportunities to further improve the delivery of services and PH-ROK bilateral relations during the operational retooling session.

28 December 2023, Seoul. The Philippine Embassy in Seoul conducted its Year End Evaluation and Operational Retooling 2023 on 27 December 2023. The Year-End Evaluation and Operational Retooling takes stock of the Embassy’s accomplishments in 2023 and discusses new projects and plans, as well as strategies for improved delivery of services for 2024.

The Planning Session showed that 2023 was a productive and meaningful year for the Embassy, especially in forging stronger political, economic, and people-to-people ties to elevate PH-ROK relations, including being engaged in milestones in relations such as the signing of the PH-ROK Free Trade Agreement. It was also a year where the Embassy continued to provide essential consular services, introduce cultural and community sports programs, organize relevant seminars and workshops, and introduce improvements in the Embassy infrastructure for the empowerment and upskilling of the Filipino community and to better serve Filipinos in South Korea. In preparation for the 75^th Anniversary of PH-ROK Bilateral Relations, Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega led the charting of a year-long calendar of commemorative activities of the Embassy and attached agencies and tasked section heads and heads of attached agencies to create meaningful projects that will elevate PH-ROK cooperation and be beneficial to the Filipino community.

Ambassador Dizon-De Vega chaired the year-end evaluation and operational retooling. The session was attended by officers and personnel of the Embassy and representatives of attached agencies from the Office of the Philippine Defense and Armed Forces Attache, Philippine Trade and Investment Center-Seoul, Philippine Department of Tourism-Korea, Philippine Agriculture Office-Seoul, Migrant Workers Office-Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, and PAG-IBIG FUND. END

PHILIPPINES AND REPUBLIC OF KOREA DISCUSS ADVANCEMENT AND PROTECTION OF MULTICULTURAL FAMILIES AND FILIPINO-KOREAN YOUTH

Undersecretary Eduardo Jose A. De Vega (rightmost) and Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega met with Assistant Minister Park Namsook at the ROK Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (MOGEF) in Seoul on 26 December 2023 to discuss the advancement and protection of multicultural families and Filipino-Korean youth living in South Korea.

26 December 2023, Seoul. Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Eduardo Jose De Vega met with Assistant Minister Park Namsook at the ROK Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (MOGEF) on 26 December 2023 to discuss the advancement and protection of multicultural families and Filipino-Korean youth living in South Korea. Philippine Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Theresa Dizon-De Vega also joined the meeting.

Undersecretary de Vega conveyed the importance of inclusivity in the formulation and implementation of long-term plans and policies that will promote the welfare and further empower the growing number of multicultural families and youth living and working in the Republic of Korea, including Filipino-Korean families and children. He likewise looked forward to enhanced initiatives and support services for marriage migrants and their children, for socio-economic growth and academic development given Korea’s “Leave No Family Behind” policy. Highlighting the positive contributions of the Filipino migrant community in the Republic of Korea, the Undersecretary also conveyed that the ROK can look forward to new initiatives of the Philippines on sustainable migration, including programs which will encourage Filipinos to be active and engaged in their host country communities, especially through volunteer or civic work.

Assistant Minister Park Namsook informed the Philippines of the ROK government’s plan for multicultural family policy from 2023-2027. Announced in April 2023, the plan gives importance to marriage migrants and is vital to providing services from pre-departure support, economic development, and long-term assimilation, and will be customized based on the needs of children. The Assistant Minister also assured the Philippines of MOGEF’s commitment to support Filipino-Korean youth and their academic development through bilingual education and other academic initiatives.

Reaffirming that the Philippines is an active and ready partner of the ROK in the advancement of marriage migrants and multicultural families, Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega conveyed that the Philippine Embassy in Seoul will continue to participate in roundtable policy discussions on family and the youth organized by MOGEF and empower the Filipino migrant community through existing programs and new initiatives in 2024.END

PHILIPPINE EMBASSY WRAPS UP PEAK-PINOY REINTEGRATION SEMINARS FOR 2023

PR MTD 176 2023

10 December 2023, Seoul – The Philippine Embassy in Seoul together with the team of Promoting Entrepreneurship and Agribusiness to Overseas Filipinos in Korea (or PEAK-Pinoy), held its culminating reintegration preparedness seminar for the year entitled “Usapang Buwis-ness: Pagsimula ng Negosyo at Tamang Pagbubuwis” on 10 December 2023 at the Embassy’s Migrant Workers Resource Center.

Philippine Tax Wiz Mr. Mon Abrea was the featured resource speaker for the activity. He walked the participants through on the taxation laws, rules and regulations of the Philippines in a practical and easy-to-understand manner. He highlighted the special taxation rules under the CREATE Law especially for business start-ups and incentives for OFWs.

The session was followed by a panel discussion on business management tips and general taxation with Commercial Counselor Jose Ma. Dinsay of the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC), Vice Consul Jilliane Joyce D. Cornista and Mr. Abrea. The OFW-participants, many of whom are already entrepreneurs, shared their own experiences and raised questions on business registration procedures, eligibility for and availment of tax incentives, and property tax-related concerns.

PEAK-Pinoy is the Embassy’s flagship project in support of the Philippine National Reintegration Program, which is jointly implemented by the PTIC, Migrant Workers Office (MWO) – OWWA, Philippine Agriculture Office (PAO), Philippine Department of Tourism (PDOT), and the Pag-IBIG Fund. The project provides continuing info-seminars on commercial, agriculture, and tourism business opportunities for overseas Filipinos in the Philippines by regional area along with entrepreneurship skills, management tips, and financial literacy.

The year-end PEAK Pinoy was the 14^th seminar held since the project was launched in March 2021. Overseas Filipinos in South Korea are invited to join the next run of reintegration seminars which will be offered by 1^st quarter of 2024. -END-

PHILIPPINES SUPPORTS EFFORTS IN STRENGTHENING HEALTHCARE COOPERATION AND PARTNERSHIP IN THE INDO-PACIFIC REGION

PR MTD 174 2023

21 December 2023, Seoul. The Philippines conveyed its support for efforts that strengthen healthcare cooperation and partnership in the Indo-Pacific Region at the 2023 Health Cooperation Forum in the Indo-Pacific Region on 13 December 2023 in Seoul. The forum was co-hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia and Department of State of the United States.

The forum aims to build a stronger vaccine cooperation network in the Indo-Pacific region. This year, under the theme “Building a Resilient Indo-Pacific Partnership on Vaccines and Healthcare”, the forum’s agenda has expanded to ASEAN-Korea cooperation on digital health, universal health coverage and workforce participation. Representatives from each ASEAN member state were invited as panelists in the special sessions.

Ms. Heidi Umadac, Supervising Health Program Officer of the Bureau of International Health Cooperation of the Department of Health (DOH-BIHC) was the Philippines’ representative to the forum. She delivered the PH intervention with emphasis on the DOH’s 8-point agenda to strengthening primary health care, utilizing digital health technology, health system resiliency, mental health and well-being, advancement and protection of health workers’ rights and well-being and strengthening the health system and structure by mainstreaming health security, enhancing disease and public health surveillance, disease prevention and control, epidemic and pandemic response capabilities across levels of the healthcare system.

The Philippines also announced that the country’s first vaccine manufacturing facility will soon rise as the Glovax Lifescience Corp. has started building its Php7.5 billion vaccine facility in Taysan, Batangas, that aims to produce 50 million doses annually. The facility is a partnership between PH local firm Glovax Biotech and ROK pharmaceutical company Eubiologics.

The Philippines looks forward to continued cooperation with the Republic of Korea on priority areas such as on the establishment of the Philippines’ Center for Disease Control and Prevention digital health technology, supply chain management, pandemic response, capacity building for health workers on universal health care, and vaccine development. END