Berlin – Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad convened the Team Philippines-Germany’s consultation meeting in Berlin on 01 March 2013 to prepare for and mark the countdown for the celebration of the 60th year of Philippine-German diplomatic relations.
The annual meeting is a regular consultations mechanism of the Team Philippines-Germany, composed of the officers and staff of the Philippine Embassy in Berlin and the various Honorary Consulates with jurisdiction over Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hessen, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony. During the meeting, the accomplishments of the Embassy and the honorary posts during the previous year and the work program for the coming year were discussed to ensure that they were in line with the Key Result Areas of President Benigno Aquino III’s Social Contract with the Filipino people.
In 2012, the Team Philippines-Germany was given a service award by President Aquino, particularly in recognition of the innovative economic diplomacy model pursued by the team.
During the consultations meeting, presentations were made on the work programs in the area of political diplomacy, economic diplomacy, as well as agriculture, tourism and cultural promotion activities. The honorary consuls also reported on their work accomplishments and plans – Prof. Dr. Gerhard Zeidler, Consul General a.h. (Stuttgart), Mr. Eckbert von Bohlen und Halbach, Consul a.h. (Munich), Mr. Heinz-Peter Heidrich, Consul a.h. (Essen), and Mr. Hartmut Fromm, Consul a.h. (Dresden).
Ambassador Natividad gave strategic directions to the Team, basing her presentation on the concrete outcomes of the official visit of German Foreign Minister Dr. Guido Westerwelle to the Philippines – the first German foreign minister to undertake such a visit in thirteen years. She reported that Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle have agreed on cooperation across the board between Philippines and Germany and had sought support from the Team to realize this vision for reinvigorated relations.
The members of the Team-Philippines supported the Ambassador’s call for efforts for further cooperation and pledged commitments for activities to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Philippine-German bilateral relations, with celebrations to begin by October 2013 until October 2014. END
