PHILIPPINES AND GERMANY COMMENCE NEGOTIATIONS ON SOCIAL SECURITY AGREEMENT

March 10, 2013

BERLIN – Negotiations on a Philippine-German bilateral agreement on social security took place at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS) in Berlin from 04 to 08 March 2013.

Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad opened the expert talks and introduced the Philippine delegation from Manila headed by Philippine Social Security System (SSS) President and CEO Mr. Emilio S. de Quiros, Jr. She spoke of the agreement’s long negotiating history and expressed satisfaction at the timing of the formal negotiations.

“As early as 2002, informal discussions on a social security agreement have begun between our labor ministers. Eleven years later, we are finally on the negotiating table,” noted the Ambassador.

The Philippine delegation discussed with their German counterparts details of social security cooperation – including how the totalization of coverage periods, export of benefits, and mutual administration assistance could potentially benefit overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Germany and Germans working in the Philippines.

President de Quiros also gave a presentation on the Philippine social security system, particularly on the “layers of social protection.” This was followed by discussions on the articles of the proposed agreement, and the concluding protocol. Ms. Judy Frances See, SSS Senior Vice President, explained the Philippines’ proposed amendments to the agreement, mainly for the benefit of OFWs.

On the other hand, Mr. Michael Schmidt of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs also gave an overview of the German social security system. The lead negotiator for the German side was Dr. Albrecht Otting also from the same ministry. Officials from the German Federal Pension Insurance, German Pension Insurance for Miners, Railway Workers and Seamen, and the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance also joined Dr. Otting’s team.

The Philippine and German delegations expressed satisfaction at the results of the first round of negotiations in Berlin. Both sides agreed that the next round of talks shall be held in the second half of 2013 in the Philippines.

“The timing could not have been better. From October of this year to 2014, Germany and the Philippines will be celebrating 60 years of bilateral diplomatic relations” Ambassador Natividad said. She further noted that, “The agreement is an instrument for the protection of Filipinos in Germany. It will potentially benefit the Filipino nurses who will soon be deployed to Germany, allowing them to repatriate their pensions in full.”

The Philippine delegation was headed by Mr. Emilio S. de Quiros, Jr., President and CEO, SSS. The members of the delegation were: Ms. Judy Frances See, Senior Vice President, International Operations Division, SSS; Atty. Roberto B. Bautista, Manager II, International Affairs Department, SSS; Atty. Edgar Julio Asuncion, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, PhilHealth; and Atty. Jonathan Mangaoang, Division Chief, PhilHealth. From the Philippine Embassy, Minister Mardomel Melicor, Vice-Consul Anna de Vera Balle, and Vice-Consul Azela Arumpac joined the negotiations. (END)

TEAM PHILIPPINES-GERMANY MARK THE COUNTDOWN FOR THE 60TH YEAR OF PHILIPPINES-GERMANY RELATIONS

March 5, 2013

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

GIZ Workshop on Project Opportunities

February 28, 2013

The GIZ, or the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit, conducted on 27 February 2013 a one-day workshop on “PV-Hybrid Systems in the Philippines.“

The workshop provided German renewable energy companies the overall energy policy framework, as well as technical challenges in the integration of photovoltaic into existing energy networks. The workshop also provided time for discussions on the potential for PV-hybridisation and market potential for promoting solar energy solutions for off-grid areas.

H.E. Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad gave her welcome remarks, where she noted positively that Philippine and German companies are working together for the expansion of installed PV output in the Philippines. The Ambassador also informed the participants that German Foreign Minister Westerwelle – in his official visit to Manila on 07-08 February 2013 – had discussed with Secretary del Rosario the need for closer cooperation to “exploit opportunities in energy, manufacturing, BPO, tourism and other infrastructure projects under the PPP and other schemes.”

Mr. Dante Briones, President of the Philippine Solar Power Alliance, was invited to share his views on market segments and opportunities for use of PV on the on/off grid/ captive market and missionary areas. Mr. Briones noted that in certain islands and remote areas of the Philippines, the concept of commercial tourism is fast catching on, and resort hotels are now considering the use of a PV/Diesel generator hybrid systems and generator sets (gensets). He also noted the potential for big agri/poultry companies to blend PV with existing and planned biomass and genset facilities.

The Philippines currently has the highest retail tariffs in Asia (average of $0.18/kWh), and it is precisely because of such high prices that there is growing interest in increasing private sector participation in RE development across the Philippines. Local officials are also becoming seriously interested in RE development because it is a potential source for job creation in the Philippine countryside.

The German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) and its operational arm, the GIZ, has been actively cooperating with the Philippine government and the private sector in promoting development cooperation in the Philippines. The GIZ operates on behalf of the BMWi, as well as other German ministries such as the Federal Foreign Office, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Federal Ministry for the Environment, in developing markets and in setting up structures and developing capacity for good governance with partner countries such as the Philippines. (end)

FIVE FILIPINO PARTICIPANTS IN THE BERLIN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL TALENT CAMPUS

February 23, 2013

Berlin. Five Filipino filmmakers participated in this year’s Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) Talent Campus. Three-hundred (300) young and upcoming international filmmakers were selected from 4,443 applicants from 137 countries to join the 11th edition of the Berlinale Talent Campus on the theme “Some Like It Hot – Filmmakers as Entertainer.”

The Filipino filmmakers who made it to the Talent Campus this year are Joenathann Alandy, producer; Paul Sta. Ana, director; Alemberg Ang, producer; Hannah Tabitha Espia, director; and Ian Dean Loreños, screenwriter.

The officers and staff of the Philippine Embassy welcomed the Philippine talents at a dinner hosted by the Embassy.

This year, a new initiative was included in the Berlinale Talent Campus program. Selected participants had the opportunity to present their ideas, screenplays, films, and projects in the Berlin House of Representatives and find partners and industry representatives from festival visitors. Filipino talent, Ian Loreños, was chosen to present his project at the Berlin House of Representatives which is the venue for the Berlinale co-production market located across the European Film Market.

Sound design is also highlighted at this year’s Campus through the new Sound Studio hands-on training program. Acclaimed and multiple Oscar-winning editor and sound designer Walter Murch (Apocalypse Now, The English Patient) joined the Campus for a master class on his groundbreaking work in connecting sound and narrative in film. The Sound Studio is a collaboration with Dolby Labs, the University of Film and Television “Konrad Wolf” in Potsdam-Babelsberg, the Fraunhofer/Heinrich-Hertz Institute in Berlin, and the Berlin-based post-production company “The Post Republic.”

The participants attended the lectures and filmmaking experiences of Dutch-American filmmaker Paul Verhoeven (Basic Instinct, Black Book), New Zealand’s Jane Campion (Top of the Lake), Britain’s Ken Loach (Spirit of ’45), Austrian Director Ulrich Seidl (Paradise: Hope), leading German actress Nina Hoss (Gold), and French distributor and producer Hengameh Panahi (Celluloid Dream).

The Berlinale Talent Campus is an initiative of the Berlin International Film Festival, a business division of the Cultural Events of the Federal Government funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, in cooperation with MEDIA – training programme of the European Union, Robert Bosch Foundation, Media Board Berlin-Brandenburg and Canon. END

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The Philippine Embassy in Berlin

PHILIPPINES AND GERMANY COMMENCE NEGOTIATIONS ON SOCIAL SECURITY AGREEMENT

TEAM PHILIPPINES-GERMANY MARK THE COUNTDOWN FOR THE 60TH YEAR OF PHILIPPINES-GERMANY RELATIONS

GIZ Workshop on Project Opportunities

FIVE FILIPINO PARTICIPANTS IN THE BERLIN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL TALENT CAMPUS

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