19 July 2023, CANBERRA - Philippine Ambassador to Australia H.E. Ma. Hellen De La Vega discussed the role of Filipino diaspora in Australia's multicultural community-building in the Ambassadors’ panel organized by Asialink Business on 19 July 2023 under its Asialink Leaders Summit.

The panel was also joined by Indonesian Ambassador to Australia H.E. Dr. Siswo Pramono and Vietnamese Ambassador to Australia H.E. Nguyen Tat Thanh and moderated by Asialink Group CEO Martine Letts. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Deputy Secretary Michelle Chan also addressed the Asialink Leaders composed of more than fifty participants across Australia and Asia.

Ambassador De La Vega stated the Filipino migrant community is the fifth largest diaspora in Australia and third largest of the Asian-Australia diaspora and underscored the strong people-to-people connections. She underscored that the Filipino diaspora supports addressing Australia’s skills needs especially in the healthcare, agriculture, education, and IT sectors.

On advancing the Philippines-Australia relations, Ambassador De La Vega urged the increase of Australian investments into the country and in Southeast Asia and enhancing cooperation on priorities such as science and technology, education, agriculture and food security, addressing climate change, cybersecurity, maritime security and maritime domain awareness. The Ambassador also mentioned the latest tourism marketing campaign “Love the Philippines” and encouraged participants to visit the Philippines.

The Asialink Leaders Program organized by Asialink is Australia’s leading professional development program on Asia, with over 28 years of history and over 1000 alumni globally. The program offers participants the opportunity to build knowledge of key Asian markets and cultures, develop a practical Asia-focused skill set and build a global mindset with Asia at its core. - END