IFRI Headquarters, Paris
18 September 2014

In a policy speech he delivered at the Institut Francais des Relations Internationales (IFRI), President Benigno S. Aquino III stated the fruits of economic and social reforms his administration has done since he took office in 2010.

“Good governance is good economics. Let me emphasize that this is not an empty pronouncement. Our Business Process Management Sector continues to mark impressive growth; manufacturing has rebounded impressively; and tourists all over the world are flocking to our beaches and cities, seeing for themselves how it is more fun in the Philippines,” the President said.

President Aquino also talked on the pursuit for common prosperity and fostering peace and stability for continued development both in the ASEAN region and Europe, citing the territorial disputes happening in the South China Sea.

“We are advocating a peaceful resolution of the dispute. To do this, we are taking two tracks: first, through promoting the formulation of a binding code of conduct, and second, through arbitration—a mechanism embedded in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. We continue to invite other claimant countries to join us, to accelerate the resolution of this very long standing dispute, which has lately caused much tension in the region,” he further stated.

A question and answer portion followed after President Aquino’s speech and IFRI Founder Thierry De Montbrial initiated the first round of questions.

Institut Francais des Relations Internationales is a French policy-oriented research institute founded in 1979. It ranked among the 100 most influential think tanks in the world according to the “Global Think Tank Report 2012” published by the University of Pennsylvania. It is the principal institution for independent research and debate in France that is dedicated to the analysis of international questions and global governance.

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