Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo will be heading to New Delhi, India to co-chair the fifth meeting of the Philippines-India Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation on 29 June 2023.

According to the DFA, Manalo will visit India upon the invitation of his Indian counterpart, Minister of External Affairs Dr. Subrahmanyam laishankar.

“The Philippines-India JCBC is a ministerial-level platform usually held every two years to review bilateral relations and chart areas of cooperation for the succeeding years,” the DFA said in a statement.

The last Philippines-India JCBC was hosted by the Philippines virtually on November 2020 due to the pandemic.

For the said meeting, Manalo will lead a delegation composed of officials from the DFA, Department of Finance, Philippine Space Agency, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency and the Philippine Overseas Construction Board of the Department of Trade and Industry.

“The inter-agency delegation reflects the deepening cooperation between the Philippines and India across various sectors,” said the DFA.

Before he meets with laishankar, the DFA chief will headline the 42nd Sapru Lecture organized by the Indian Council of World Affairs and the Philippine Foreign Service Institute.

He will also engage with the Observer Research Foundation, as well as the Philippines’ Honorary Consular Officials in India and Nepal and Filipino community leaders during his visit.

“Secretary Manalo’s visit to New Delhi builds on the positive trajectory of high-level interactions between the two countries in the past six years,” the DFA said.

The Philippines and India are set to celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations next year.