Bong Go joins other senators on official parliamentary visit to France; seeks greater PH-FR cooperation

Senator Christopher "Bong" Go, alongside other senators, flew to France for a parliamentary visit to meet with their counterparts and discuss ways to strengthen bilateral ties between the Philippines and the European country.

The official Philippine Senate delegation was invited to visit France as part of inter-parliamentary exchanges and on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of Philippine-French diplomatic relations.

On Tuesday, 25 October, Go and his fellow senators met with Guillaume Kasbarian, a member of the French National Assembly and chair of its Economic Affairs Committee; French Senator Daniel Gremillet; and members of the Atomic Energy Commission. They also attended a meeting with the French-South East Asian Friendship Group presided over by French Senators Mathieu Darnaud and Gisèle Jourda.

Go expressed optimism that the parliamentary visit will pave the way for the two countries to deepen their ties and explore opportunities for greater collaboration, particularly in renewable energy, climate change, economic development, and food security, among others.

"It is my sincere desire that during this parliamentary visit, we will be able to identify areas of cooperation that will lead to even closer ties between our two nations," said Go.

Go, who also chairs the Senate Committee on Health, stated that the visit also serves as an opportunity to personally thank members of the French government for its multimillion Covid-19 vaccine donation to the Philippines through the COVAX Facility at the height of the pandemic, noting that the assistance provided a significant boost to the country's national vaccination program.

"I would like to express my gratitude to the French government for donating Covid-19 vaccines to the Philippines during the height of the pandemic," said Go.

"Filipinos will forever be grateful to you for this act of kindness, which went a long way toward ensuring the success of our vaccination program and the safety of our citizens against the threat of COVID-19," he added.

In 2021, at the height of the pandemic, the French government donated millions of doses of coronavirus vaccine to the Philippines to aid in the country's vaccination efforts.

Go also expressed optimism that the said visit will lead to more exchanges in crafting meaningful legislation designed to safeguard the safety of Filipinos, given that the Philippines is touted to be one of the most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change. Because of its geographical location in the Pacific, the country is battered by an average of 20 typhoons a year, resulting in significant casualties and damage to property.

In the 19th Congress, Go refiled his measure seeking to establish the Department of Disaster Resilience that will serve as the unified, Cabinet secretary-level agency in charge of disaster response and management, risk mitigation and rehabilitation, among others.

The Philippine Senate delegation also visited the French Senate where they received a standing ovation from their French counterparts. "We hope that the excellent rapport between our two Senates will intensify and be at the heart of the flourishing relations between our two countries. The Philippines is for France a privileged partner in the Indo-Pacific, with which we have the vocation to develop new cooperation projects," said the official greeting read at the French Senate plenary session last Tuesday. French Senate President, Gérard Larcher, also personally welcomed Go and his fellow senators there.

Also joining the parliamentary visit are Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva, Senate Deputy Majority Leader Joseph Victor Ejercito, and Senators Manuel Lapid, Maria Lourdes Binay, and Grace Poe.