The Philippines visit came as part of Sheikh Tamim’s regional tour that will include stops in Bangladesh and Nepal.
Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani has praised the Filipino community in his country for their “effective contribution” to the nation’s development, during talks with Philippines’ President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday in Manila.
“His Highness praised the Filipino community in the State of Qatar and its effective contribution to the development process in the country,” the Amiri Diwan said in a statement.
The Philippines visit came as part of Sheikh Tamim’s regional tour which includes stops in Bangladesh and Nepal. Sheikh Tamim departed Manila on Monday for Dhaka, where he met with President Mohammed Shahabuddin.
In Manila, both leaders held talks at the Malacanang Palace over the two countries’ 43-year ties and ways to enhance joint cooperation in multiple fields.
“My visit to the Philippines comes within the framework of our great interest in developing cooperation with this friendly country and raising our bilateral relations to the optimal level,” Sheikh Tamim said in a post on X on Monday.
“The results of my fruitful discussions today with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will contribute to strengthening mutual trade and investment initiatives and serving the common interests of our two countries,” the Qatari leader added.
The Qatari and Filipino leaders witnessed the signing of an agreement and eight memoranda of understanding in Manila, according to the Amiri Diwan.
Both countries signed one agreement over the exemption of entry visas for holders of diplomatic, private and official passports.
Both sides also signed eight memoranda of understanding covering cooperation in sports, youth, combating human trafficking, climate change, and tourism.
The other three memoranda involved the mutual recognition of seafarers’ certificates, cooperation between the Qatar Chamber and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and one between the Qatar Chamber and the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Qatar-Philippines ties
Qatar and the Philippines had established ties in 1981, with more than 270,000 Filipinos currently living and working in the Gulf country.
In 2012, Qatar’s former leader Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Father Amir, was the first Arab leader to visit the Philippines for more than three decades.
In trade, the Philippines comes second out of Bangladesh and Nepal. Trade investments between Doha and Manila hit QAR 732 million (over $200 million) in 2023.
Investments aside, Doha and Manila share joint development agreements.
Over the past five years, the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) provided the Philippines with aid worth around QAR 4.6 million (around $1.3 million), according to the state news agency (QNA).
Last year, Qatar was among the first countries to provide the Philippines with humanitarian aid following Hurricane Paeng, QFFD’s Director General Khalifa bin Jassim Al Kuwari told QNA.
At the time, QFFD provided food baskets that benefited 1,350 families in addition to providing cash assistance to 1,250 farmers and livestock owners.
It also distributed a mobile kitchen to prepare 8,000 hot meals a day and a water tank with a capacity of 10,000 litres that benefited 38,400 people.
Qatar also stepped in at the time of the Covid-19 outbreak, when it provided 50,000 doses of the Sinovac anti-virus vaccine.
In aviation, Doha and Manila have shared an air services agreement ever since 1993, which came into force in 1994.
Qatari Businessmen Association Chairman, Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al-Thani, told QNA that the amir’s Asia tour “comes within the framework of Qatar’s openness to all global markets.”
“The three stated countries represent more than 300 million people, making it imperative to cooperate and strengthen relations with them, especially since these relations date back four decades of bilateral cooperation,” Sheikh Faisal said, as cited by QNA.