Considered the fastest agreement signed on nuclear energy, the Philippines and the United States inked last Thursday an Agreement for Cooperation Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy or the 123 Agreement.

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. goes along with the internationally considered principle, with overwhelming support, that global and regional economic governance platforms such as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, could create peace built on a solid economic foundation that could avert conflict through sustained prosperity and progress.

Naturally, in this time of great peril, with the war between Ukraine and Russia, and the ongoing battle between Hamas and Israel, with all the dangers of it widening into a regional conflict, any idea that promotes peace will always be well received with applause.

"I wish to emphasize once more that global and regional economic governance platforms such as APEC are geared towards averting conflict because sustained prosperity and progress are only possible in a world that is at peace, which in turn must be a peace that is built on a solid economic foundation," said President Marcos during the opening of the APEC CEO Summit at the George Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California, that tackled Intentional Equity in Sustainability.

To build cooperation toward intentional equity, Marcos said APEC member economies must leverage the bloc's core value propositions as the premier regional forum in the Asia-Pacific, the incubator of innovative ideas, the pathfinder for collaborative solutions to emerging trade issues, and the platform for forward-looking and responsive economic and trade policies.

"We must act regionally; we must also shrink our intentions globally by finding coherence in our workstreams with those of other economies of the world and other regional and international organizations," Marcos said.

The President spelled out key elements critical to building collaboration. Among these are the need for continued expansion to accommodate seats to represent all the people, the broadening of government partnerships with stakeholders, especially the business sector, and watching for the escalation of protectionism.

Other critical factors are government intervention in case of market or business failures, increasing the level of ambition, and enlarging the scope of cooperation, he said. President Marcos arrived in San Francisco last Tuesday to join other national leaders for the 30th APEC Leaders Meeting.

The President went on a working visit to Los Angeles and Honolulu after his successful participation in the APEC meeting and related activities. He immediately met with the Filipino community in the American state where his family stayed in 1986.

It was when he was among the overseas Filipino workers, or OFWs, that the President became ecstatic about their great contribution to our economy.

The full 2022 personal remittances from overseas Filipino workers reached an all-time high of $36.14 billion or 8.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) for 2022. He said their love for their families kept them sending money back to the country.

"There are Filipinos everywhere in the world. The other day," he said, "there was somebody who came from Alaska. In America there are about four and a half million Filipinos. But it is here in Los Angeles where there are the most number. In the last election, it was here where Inday Sara and I got the most number of votes. We thank you for that and we will return that to you in good and prompt service for the good of our country."

While talking about the OFWs in the Middle East, the President said, "It is my wish that one day foreign employment will be driven by choice, not by necessity." Recognizing this, he said, "requires a great sacrifice from them, their families, and their communities. So, the government then has the corollary duty to ensure the people are not in harm's way."