Somali officials to visit RP

MANILA, Philippines - Somali Deputy Prime Minister Abdurahman Aden Ibrahim Ibbi will lead a high-level delegation on a three-day official working visit to the Philippines beginning Monday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced yesterday.

Ibbi will be accompanied by Somali Ambassador to Indonesia Mohamud Olow Barow and Somali Navy Commander Admiral Farah Ahmed Omar during the visit from Dec. 21 to 23 upon the invitation of the Philippine government.

The DFA said this is the first visit to the Philippines of a high-ranking Somali official since the official visit in January 1979 of Somali Foreign Minister Abdurahman Jama Barre.

The Somali official, who is also the minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, is scheduled to meet with officials of the Philippine Coast Guard, the Philippine Navy, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and the Civil Service Commission.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Enrique Manalo will host a luncheon in honor of the Somali deputy prime minister.

The DFA said the visit is an offshoot of President Arroyo’s meeting with Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed at the sidelines of the African Union Special Summit in Tripoli, Libya last Aug. 31.

During the meeting, Mrs. Arroyo offered the Philippines’ assistance in training and strengthening the capabilities of the Somali Coast Guard and Civil Service.

Possible areas of cooperation and training that will be explored in the Manila meetings include maritime security, search and rescue, law enforcement operations; combating piracy; marine environmental protection; aquaculture development; and human resource development.

The visit is also expected to boost the Philippines’ anti-piracy efforts. As the supplier of about a third of the world’s shipping manpower, the Philippines is directly affected by rampant piracy.

In a related development, Somali pirates have released the Greek-owned MV Delvina, together with its 14 Filipino seafarers, an embassy report said yesterday.

The Philippine embassy in Nairobi reported to the DFA that the Filipino crew are safe and in good health.

The vessel and its crew are now heading to Mombasa.

The latest release has reduced the number of Filipino still in the hands of Somali pirates to 56, involving five vessels.

The DFA said the government continues to step up preventive and remedial efforts to address the continued increase in the number of piracy incidents and hostage-taking involving Filipino seafarers off the coast of Somalia.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced recently its initiative to require Filipino seafarers to undergo anti-piracy training to teach them how to deal with piracy situations and how to avoid it.

DOLE and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) have also issued safety and security directives to manning agencies of ships plying the Gulf of Aden.