The Philippine-American Educational Foundation and the Philippine Competition Commission have agreed to a partnership to implement a five-year, P287-million staff development program on competition law and policy aimed at enhancing the skills, knowledge, and capabilities of Filipinos working at PCC and other pertinent government agencies.
In a ceremony on Friday, PAEF Honorary Board chairperson and United States Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Y. Kim and PCC chairman Arsenio M. Balisacan signed the Memorandum of Understanding to establish a new staff development program on competition law and policy involving the personnel of PCC, Office of the Solicitor General, Department of Justice and National Economic and Development Authority.
“This new partnership between PCC and the Philippine-American Educational Foundation [PAEF, also known as the Fulbright Commission in the Philippines] will build the skills, knowledge, and capabilities of Filipinos working at PCC, OSG, DOJ and NEDA,” the US Embassy said in a statement.
During the signing, Kim expressed his strong support for the new partnership, “One of the most important endeavors for the embassy … is investing in the development of the Philippines’ human capital. This new partnership between PCC and Fulbright does exactly that: Builds Filipino capacity in competition law and policy to create a more competitive and open market,” the US envoy said.
Also present were PCC Commissioners and other officials, PAEF Board Chairperson and US Embassy Public Affairs Counselor Philip Roskamp, and PAEF Executive Director Julio S. Amador III.
The new five-year, P287-million ($5.67-million) staff development program was made possible through Asian Development Bank financing in support of PCC’s “Capacity Building to Foster Competition” Project.
It will send Filipino staff to US higher education institutions for degree and non-degree studies, as well as for research and training.
The program will also provide opportunities for professional consultations, lecturing, and research in PCC-accredited universities and institutions in the Philippines, the US Embassy stressed.
“The program aligns with PAEF’s broad mission to promote greater international education and exchange between the Philippines and United States, and PCC’s goal of improving the Philippine government’s capacity for competition policy implementation to foster greater economic growth,” the embassy statement said.
