Berlin. The Philippines participated for the first time in the 6th Berlin Agriculture Ministers’ Summit and Global Forum on Food and Agriculture (GFFA), which took place from 16-18 January 2014. Department of Agriculture Undersecretary for Special Concerns Ms. Berna Romulo-Puyat led the Philippine delegation, which also included Representative (1st District Isabela) Rodolfo Albano III and Representative (2nd District Davao) Mylene Garcia-Albano and Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad.

Undersecretary Berna Romulo Puyat and Amabssador Maria Cleofe Natividad speak with Germany’s Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich (Photo courtesy: Juan Wynn)

Undersecretary Romulo Puyat served as panelist of the GFFA discussion on “Empowering Women in Agriculture” organized by Germany’s Fair Trade Forum. During the panel discussion, Ms. Romulo Puyat highlighted that the Philippines has embedded gender equality in both its culture and legal framework, with the country having been identified as having the smallest gender gap in Asia and 5th in the world, according to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Gender Gap Index. The Philippine government has also implemented gender and development programs to support rural development, particularly for microfinancing and entrepreneurship.

Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad hosted a dinner at her residence for the Department of Agriculture and business delegation led by Undersecretary Berna Romulo Puyat

The Philippines also signaled its interest to explore deeper cooperation on fair trade, particularly on technical assistance in securing Fairtrade certification. Undersecretary Romulo Puyat highlighted that fair trade practices support marginalized sectors, promote equality between men and women, and help market Filipino products globally. Ms. Puyat noted that a product like Destileria Limtuaco & Co.’s Manille Liqueur de Calamansi would be in a prime position to secure fair trade labeling. The liqueur is largely produced by utilizing the calamansi rinds produced by female Mangyans from Oriental Mindoro. Sales help finance the Mangyan Center for Learning and Development, whose main objective is to preserve the Mangyan culture and language.

Undersecretary Romulo Puyat, Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad, and Chef Margarita Fores sample dishes created by the Philippine Residence cook, Ms. Emerenciana Rayos (far left)

Ms. Puyat and Ms. Andrea Futter of the GEPA Society for the Promotion of Partnership with the Third World, Ltd. (GEPA The Fair Trade Company) agreed to explore future collaboration including technical assistance. Currently, GEPA carries Muscovado sugar and dried mangoes as part of its product lines.

During the Berlin Agriculture Ministers’ Summit, Undersecretary Puyat called on greater international cooperation to support disaster and climate-vulnerable countries like the Philippines to properly adapt, conserve and utilize its natural resources.END.

Last Updated ( Thursday, 13 February 2014 )

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