A French company plans a shipyard in the Philippines

The Department of Commerce and Industry (DTI) said a French company had pledged to invest 1.5 billion pesos for a shipyard project in the Philippines.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the DTI-Bureau of International Trade Relations said OCEA Director General Roland Joassard made the pledge at the 9th Philippines-France Joint Economic Committee (JEC).

DTI said the shipyard project could potentially create 500 to 600 direct and indirect jobs.

The Commerce Department, however, did not provide additional details on the project.

Commerce Secretary Ramon Lopez said the JEC meeting is “a testament to how the Philippines and France are now rebuilding together, after the global challenges faced during the first phase of the pandemic.”

During the high-level JEC bilateral economic dialogue, which was hosted by the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Recovery, the two countries agreed to pursue specific IC Design collaboration projects.

French Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness Franck Riester, who announced a visit to the Philippines before the end of 2021, also presented Lopez with three letters of intent confirming financial support for upcoming projects with the Ministry of Transport.

These include financial assistance in support of a training boat contract for the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy and a possible proposal for a maritime expert.

Lopez gave the French minister a letter from the Bases Conversion Development Authority for the study of the next phase of the Clark Fresh Food Hub, and another letter expressing a keen interest in the renewal of the technical training programs of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines addressed to the General Directorate of Civil Aviation.

During the JEC, the French space agency, Center National d’Etudes Spatiale, issued an invitation to the newly created Philippine Space Agency to join the Space Climate Observatory Initiative, a group of space agencies and international organizations, who collectively strive to “accurately assess and monitor the consequences of climate change from observations and numerical models.”

The two countries have also identified specific projects on dairy development, geographical indications, control and eradication of African swine fever in the agricultural sector, and market access areas as the Philippines and France move forward. preparing for a future bilateral agricultural meeting.

Energy projects have also been identified by the two countries, as they intend to explore alternative energy cooperation projects.

Lopez also discussed with Riester the positive impact of the Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus or GSP + which has increased market access for Filipino products in the EU, with the Filipino official highlighting the value of a future free trade agreement. with the region, while Minister Riester explained the French strategy vis-à-vis Southeast Asia and the Philippines.

The two countries have agreed to convene the 10th Philippines-France JEC in 2022 in Paris.