The Philippines and Singapore have exchanged memorandums of understanding (MoU) on protecting Filipino health workers and the environment.

This came after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam in Malacañang on Friday.

Shanmugaratnam arrived in Manila on Thursday for a three-day state visit.

During their bilateral meeting, Marcos and Shanmugaratnam were briefed on the contents of the MoUs on the recruitment of Filipino healthcare workers to Singapore and on the collaboration on carbon credits under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Both governments agreed to promote the mutual protection of healthcare workers through the observance of fair, ethical, and sustainable recruitment practices anchored on the laws and regulations of the Philippines and Singapore.

There are some 250,000 overseas Filipino workers in Singapore.

The MoU on the recruitment of Filipino healthcare workers “recognizes the importance of knowledge transfer and the sharing of expertise” between both nations “through meaningful cooperation in the healthcare field.”

Recruitment deal

In a joint press conference, Marcos emphasized that the recruitment pact would strike a balance in achieving both countries’ needs for their respective healthcare sectors, as well as providing for the needs of the personal development and growth” of Filipino healthcare workers.

“Through this MoU, we express our confidence in Singapore’s legal and judicial system which will ensure that the rights, welfare, and well-being of our kababayan OFWs will be protected as they pursue their careers in Singapore,” he said.

The President also touted the deal between both countries on health cooperation, aligned to Article 6 of the Paris Agreement which sets out how countries can push voluntary cooperation to reach their climate targets.

“Hopefully with this memorandum we will be able to incentivize both industries and individuals to actively work to reduce their carbon footprint, while allowing the government to mobilize financial resources to boost the fiscal space,” Marcos said.

The Philippines has been a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) since August 1994.

The UNFCC subsequently ratified the Paris Agreement in April 2017.

Meanwhile, the “liberalized” air services agreement between the Philippines and Singapore would boost the two countries’ cooperation in the business and tourism sectors, according to Shanmugaratnam. 

In a recent joint press conference, Tharman said the memorandum of understanding between both countries, signed by the Philippines and Singapore in May this year, is expected to spur greater opportunities in tourism and trade industries.

“That’s a very important basis for business people, including our MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises), to take an interest in different parts of the Philippines and find it very convenient to flip between Singapore and the Philippines,” he added.

The MoU allows both Philippines and Singaporean airlines to offer up to 150 weekly codeshare services to carry passengers between Singapore and Manila, with airlines from third countries as codeshare partners.

The new limit of 150 weekly codeshare services will double by the end March of 2026 and will be fully lifted by the end March of 2027.

Tharman assured Marcos of Singapore’s support for the Philippines’ economic transformation bid. 

He added that Singaporean companies have high confidence in investing in the Philippines.