12 July 2004 - The Philippines and Malaysia will convene the 5th Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) from 14 to 16 July 2004 in Makati City. Secretary Delia Domingo Albert and Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar will lead their respective delegations.

The two officials are expected to make an assessment of the level of bilateral cooperation existing between the two countries, particularly in trade, investments and other forms of economic cooperation, and political and security cooperation, particularly in their common fight against terrorism and transnational crime.

Bilateral relations between the Philippines and Malaysia have been vigorously active, with exchange of visits at the highest level, the most recent was Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s visit to Manila in January 2004.

Malaysia plays an important role as facilitator and convenor of peace talks between the Philippine Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.  The two countries also form part of the BIMP-EAGA growth area, which also includes Brunei and Indonesia.

The volume trade between the two countries reached US$3.8 billion in 2003.  Major Philippine exports to Malaysia include electronics, machinery and auto parts, processed food and coconut oil.  Major Philippine imports from Malaysia include electronics, petroleum, chemicals and forest products.

The Philippines is scheduled to host two other related meetings: the Joint Committee on Border Cooperation and the Joint Commission on Assistance for the Socio-Economic Advancement of Muslim Filipinos.  These two meetings will be held in the Philippines in the last quarter of 2004.  The next joint commission meeting will be held in Malaysia at a date to be mutually agreed upon. - END