by Edwin Cordevilla
Undersecretary
Presidential
Communications Office
It was a brief state visit by President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. to Beijing from January 3-5, but it yielded a treasure trove of investment pledges, infrastructure loans, and agreements to find lasting solutions to contentious issues in the South China Sea.
President Marcos Jr. met Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time at the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Bangkok only in November last year. And yet, two months later, the two leaders managed to strengthen their camaraderie to bring the bilateral relations to a new and higher level based on mutual trust and mutual benefit.
High-powered delegation
The three-day state visit to China by President Marcos Jr. aimed at further enhancing the already warm bilateral relations since 1971, when the Philippines established formal diplomatic ties with Beijing.
To underscore the importance of this trip, Marcos brought along with him House Speaker Martin Romualdez, former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and key Cabinet members, including Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual, Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, and Information and Communications Technology Secretary Ivan John Uy.
The composition of the delegation reflected the president’s fervent desire to strengthen cooperation with Beijing in various areas of endeavor, such as trade, investments, tourism, and a digital economy, among others.
Economic gains
Dialogues between the Philippine delegation and top Chinese leaders led to expanded economic cooperation with our closest neighbor, now an emerging global economic superpower.
The three-day state visit generated $22.8 billion worth of investment pledges from China. “It was a very quick visit, but we accomplished a lot. It was very productive. It was worth it,” Marcos said upon his return from Beijing.
The commitments from various Chinese investors included $13.76 billion for renewable energy, $7.32 billion for electric vehicles and mineral processing, and $1.72 billion for agriculture.
The Philippines secured fresh loans from China totaling $201.8 million, which will be used to bankroll key infrastructure projects of the Marcos administration, such as bridges and flood control systems. In addition, China agreed to make available about $218 million more for future projects. According to Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, the additional funding brings to $1.06 billion Beijing’s loan commitments for Manila’s ongoing projects.
The delegation also signed several bilateral agreements. “The signing of these agreements demonstrates the strong commitment between China and the Philippines to deepen bilateral cooperation through infrastructure development,” according to the Finance Secretary.
Secretary Diokno signed four separate loan agreements with the Export-Import Bank of China for the financing of planned bridges across the Pasig-Marikina River and the Manggahan Floodway project.
The Finance Secretary likewise concluded an agreement on economic and technical cooperation with the China International Development Cooperation Agency worth $17.7 million (P12.2 billion) for “projects to be agreed between China and the Philippines based on the development plan and specific needs of the Philippine government.”
The delegation also received the handover certificate for two China-built bridges completed in April 2022 and September 2021, respectively. Spanning the Pasig River in Manila and the cities of Makati and Mandaluyong, these bridges are now contributing to the marked improvement of the road transport network in Metro Manila.
Beijing and Manila signed a total of 14 cooperation documents covering such areas as agriculture, tourism, and manufacturing.
These agreements, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said, will bring huge benefits for the Philippine economy in the long-term as they are consistent with the Marcos administration’s Philippine Development Plan (PDP). Balisacan, who also heads the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), explained that the strategic areas identified in the newly completed PDP for the medium term are very much the same areas covered by those different agreements.
“So it’s very promising that the PDP will be supported by trust like this and we need to move fast again. As I said, move fast, seize the opportunities, get our house in order. We have so many things to fix,” Balisacan pointed out.
The protocols for “phytosanitary requirements for the export of fresh durians from the Philippines to China” were among the areas covered by 14 bilateral agreements. China pledged to import $2.09 billion worth of fruits from the Philippines, including coconut and bananas, a move that’s definitely good news for our farmers.
Filipino farmers will also benefit immensely from deals struck by the Philippine delegation that would help lower fertilizer prices. The deals, signed between the state-run Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC) and two Chinese enterprises, seek to “ensure sustainable supply of much-needed fertilizers at reasonable prices.” President Marcos, who is also agriculture secretary, lamented how the cost of farm inputs, especially fertilizers, has “become prohibitive and unaffordable for our local farmers.” Hence, providing sustainable and affordable supply of inputs such as fertilizers to our farmers will no doubt contribute to the country’s food security.
The visit also led to the signing of the Implementation Program on Tourism Cooperation with China’s Culture and Tourism Ministry. According to Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, this program “will generate massive employment opportunities and investments across all sectors of tourism throughout the Philippines.” The two governments will work together to boost tourist arrivals, add direct flights to key destinations, conduct joint promotional activities, and invite investments in tourism infrastructure.
The new Philippine ambassador to China, Jaime FlorCruz, has disclosed that the country can expect up to $2 billion in China investments to set up the first liquid steel plant here. The agreement signed by steel companies Baowu and SteelAsia will revive the domestic steel industry. “We can see that this is aligned with our needs. This is not just because China wants to sell but also because we will benefit from these agreements,” he said.
Flor Cruz said that ensuring the implementation of various agreements would not be easy and that “follow-through” would be necessary. However, he noted that higher Chinese officials had also approved the agreements, not just the Chinese companies. “This time, I feel that these pledges, the memorandums of understanding, are a sign from higher officials that this time, they will deliver tangible benefits, tangible projects,” he said.
China is currently the country’s largest trading partner. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority show that the Philippine trade deficit with the Asian economic giant stood at $15.25 billion as of 2021.
Political gains
During the state visit, President Marcos met with President Xi, Premier Li Keng, and Li Zhanshu, chairman of the National People’s Congress, while delegation members met separately with their Chinese counterparts.
“The state visit was highly successful because there were many engagements at different levels”, said Speaker Martin Romualdez.
The House leader said China’s National People’s Congress also seeks to have more engagements with their counterparts from the Philippines — the Senate and the House, especially since planned activities in the previous years were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. “So, their parliamentary system lends itself to these interparliamentary exchanges,” he said.
The one-on-one meeting between President Marcos and President Xi allowed diplomacy to work in resolving longstanding issues between the two countries.
The meeting provided an opportunity for President Marcos to obtain a commitment from Chinese President Xi Jinping to “find a compromise and find a solution that will be beneficial so that our fishermen might be able to fish again in their natural fishing grounds.”
“We also discussed what we can do to move forward to avoid any possible mistakes, misunderstandings that could trigger a bigger problem that we already have,” the president told media. Prior to the state visit, fisherfolk groups had urged President Marcos to prioritize pushing back on China’s incursions in Philippine waters that are part of our Exclusive Economic Zone or EEZ.
During their meeting, Marcos and Xi covered a wide range of subjects, from addressing the trade imbalance between the two countries to sharing experiences on the shift to renewable energy, and also about climate change.
But there were two other significant outcomes of their conversation. One was that China is ready to resume talks on joint oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea. The vital sealane, which is rich in oil, gas and marine life, is where about $3 trillion in ship-borne trade passes annually, but it has been a source of tension between China and several Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, over territorial claims.
The other agreement pertains to the establishment of a direct communication mechanism on maritime issues between the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) of the Philippines and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China to avoid any conflict in the disputed waters.
“President Xi seemed to be genuinely interested in all of these issues and finding a way to move forward to strengthen the relationship between China and the Philippines,” Marcos said.
“This bilateral relationship now allows both sides to manage differences in the West Philippine Sea and so as to not allow it to hinder the rest of our fruitful engagements and multifaceted cooperation,” he said. The two leaders agreed that maritime issues “do not comprise the entirety of our relations,” acknowledging, however, that it is a “significant concern and priority” for the country.
If the discussions between the two leaders are any indication, we may well see less tension in the South China Sea in the years ahead.
How will Filipinos benefit from the state visit to China?
At this point, we should now ask: How will the 3-day state visit by President Marcos Jr. to China—and visits to other countries in the future—benefit the nation, particularly those Filipinos who live in the margins of society and eke out a hand-to-mouth existence on a daily basis?
Ordinary Filipinos will directly benefit from closer ties with China in the years ahead. The agreements signed between the Philippines and China on various projects covering infrastructure development, economic cooperation, trade and commerce, maritime security, and tourism, among others, will create more job and livelihood opportunities for our labor force. With more jobs made available to Filipinos, we may yet see a gradual reduction in poverty incidence in the country, and a corresponding increase in the quality of life of our people.
We asked Aling Corazon de la Cruz, who is in her early 60s and tends a small sari-sari store in Malabon City but earns barely enough to feed her family, if she was aware that President Marcos had recently gone to China and returned home with reports of billions of dollars worth of Chinese investments here that can create jobs for Filipinos. She responded that yes, she watched TV news that reported on the Marcos state visit. “Sana nga at mabigyan ng disenteng trabaho ang mga mahihirap na di kayang mabuhay nang maayos sa ngayon dahil sa taas ng presyo ng mga bilihin.” (I hope that poor Filipinos who now find it difficult to cope with high prices can get decent jobs.)
Mang Eduardo Santos, who sells used jeans using a kariton in Quezon City streets, says he is also aware of the Marcos state visit after reading news from a local tabloid that jobs can be available if Chinese investments do come in as a result of the Marcos trip. “Kahit anong regular na trabaho papasukan ko kung kaya, para lang masustentuhan ang pamilya ko.” (I’m willing to get a regular job if I’m qualified, so that I can support my family.)
President Marcos is scheduled to conduct state visits to other countries, including Japan and the United States, this year. These trips not only adhere to an independent foreign policy that makes the Philippines a “friend to all, enemy to none”, but also an investment in a better future for all Filipinos even after his term of office ends in 2028.