Republik der Philippinen Botschaft und Ständige Vertretung bei den Internationalen Organisationen in Wien		Repúbliká ng Pilipinas Pásuguán at Pamalagiang Kinatawán sa mga Pangdáigdigang Kalipunán sa Vienna
PRESS RELEASE 05-09		13 May 2009

Philippines and Croatia Sign Agreements on Culture and Sports

The Philippines and Croatia concluded two agreements on cooperation in the fields of culture and sports that aim to pave the way for greater people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

The agreements were signed during the occasion of the official visit of Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alberto G. Romulo to Croatia on 11 May 2009. The visit marked a significant milestone in the bilateral relations between the Philippines and Croatia as it marked the first ever visit by a foreign minister from the Philippines since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1993.

The first--a Memorandum of Agreement on Cultural Cooperation—was signed by Secretary Romulo with the Minister of Culture of Croatia, Mr. Bozo Biskupic. The agreement aims to facilitate greater people-to-people exchanges between the two countries and promote better understanding between their peoples of the various cultural, artistic and literary expressions of the other country.

At the sidelines of the signing ceremony, Mr. Biskupic said that a collection of art works by noted Croatian artists is currently on exhibit at the Cultural Center of the Philippines Contemporary Art Museum. He stressed the importance of the agreement as a way of forging closer collaboration between Croatia and the Philippines in promoting their respective cultural heritage in each other’s country.

The Philippine Embassy in Vienna (with concurrent jurisdiction over Croatia) is pursuing specific initiatives in this area, including the hosting of a festival of Filipino films in Zagreb and facilitating the visits of Filipino and Croatian artists.

Secretary Romulo and Minister Jandrokovic also witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the Field of Sports by Ambassador Linglingay Lacanlale, Philippine Ambassador to Croatia, and State Secretary for Science, Technology and Sports, Mr. Dragan Primorac.

The MOU also aims to strengthen bilateral relations by building up institutional networking and people-to-people contacts, and to pave the way for the creation of an exchange program for athletes/coaches.

"Croatia holds an outstanding record in international sports competitions, particularly in basketball, handball, football and tennis, thereby opening potential cooperation agreements in exchange and training programs and the establishment of linkages between the sports bodies’ of the two countries.

“With the implementation of the MOU, the Philippines and Croatia can benefit from each other’s expertise in the development of sports in their country. Sports is also an avenue through which we can facilitate greater interaction between our peoples,” Ambassador Lacanlale said.