I arrived in Manila on Aug. 13 to begin my mission as Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Philippines. The very next morning, I paid my respects at the Korean War Memorial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, bowing my head to honor the people whose bravery and sacrifice helped ensure that the free, prosperous and democratic Korea I have known all my life could exist at all.
That sense of indebted gratitude is engraved into the collective memory of the Korean people. We know the story of the 7,420 Filipino soldiers who crossed the ocean to answer Korea’s urgent call during its darkest hour. Far from their families, the members of the Philippine Expeditionary Forces to Korea (PEFTOK) fought to defend a people they did not know, in a foreign land with a different language and four seasons.
That same spirit of solidarity led me to Los Baños, Laguna. On Aug. 20, I visited the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to inspect the Agricultural Genomics Research Center (AGRC), which is scheduled to open on Sept. 21, 2026.
At first glance, a modern agricultural research center may seem a world away from the solemn fields of war. Yet, they both tell the story of two countries whose nearly 80 years of friendship has been shaped by hardship, gratitude and a determination to build a better future.
While Korea and the Philippines today celebrate thriving bonds in trade, culture and defense cooperation, one of the most consequential chapters of our brotherhood unfolded in rice paddies in Los Baños, Laguna.
When IRRI was established in 1960, its mission was to wage war on Asian hunger. Six years later came IR8, the “Miracle Rice” that helped launch the Green Revolution and dramatically raise rice yields across Asia.
Korea was among the beneficiaries, and eventually a partner in that scientific revolution. In the 1960s, Korean scientist Mun-Hue Heu worked at IRRI toward the development of the hybrid rice line that became Tong-il or “Reunification Rice.” Officially deployed in Korea by 1972, this variety, mass-produced through an IRRI-Rural Development Administration collaboration, helped transform Korea from a rice importer into a self-sufficient producer by the late 1970s.
We owe our survival to Filipino valor; we owe our post-war sustenance, in no small part, to Filipino soil. This bit of history gives the AGRC a significance far beyond its location on the UPLB campus.
The project, formally titled “Capacity-Building for Higher Education and the Establishment of Agricultural Genomics Research Center at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños,” was launched through a signing ceremony at UP Diliman on July 14, 2023. The project brings together the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), UPLB and IRRI to strengthen Philippine agricultural genomics research, education and partnerships.
It must be pointed out that this is not simply another infrastructure project, for the AGRC is designed to build people as much as facilities. Filipino researchers are receiving advanced training, including PhD opportunities at Korean universities, while researchers from both countries stand side by side decoding the molecular blueprint of climate-resilient crops.
The initiative aligns with President Marcos Jr.’s vision of a more modern, science-based and resilient agriculture. In his 2022 UN General Assembly address, he called for “concrete steps to address the global food security crisis,” linking it to the wider challenges posed by climate change and geopolitical instability.
In his 2023 State of the Nation Address, he made the domestic direction more explicit: “In our quest for food security, our methods are now more guided by science and the balance of nature,” while outlining efforts to modernize agriculture, improve productivity and strengthen the food supply chains.
That agenda now extends into regional and bilateral cooperation. As ASEAN Chair in 2026, President Marcos has called for stronger intra-ASEAN trade and food systems, noting that digital innovation can help anticipate shortages, improve agricultural productivity and support better decision-making.
His administration’s partnership with Korea is moving in the same direction. During President Lee Jae Myung’s March 2026 state visit, the two countries signed agreements covering agriculture, digital cooperation, digitalization and innovation, among other areas, which would sustain the momentum of the Philippines-ROK Strategic Partnership.
The AGRC translates these priorities by applying advanced molecular science to make crops adapt better to environmental changes, while linking the research networks of IRRI and CGIAR. With the Philippines chairing ASEAN, the center can grow beyond a bilateral project into a regional beacon of agricultural innovation, linking Filipino scientists with partners across and beyond Southeast Asia. The center’s proximity to IRRI points a more symbolic light upon them: the institution that in the past helped improve Asian rice production and contributed to Korea’s own agricultural transformation standing beside a new edifice working at the frontier of genomics for the future of food security.
The Korean-Philippine story began with survival in a season of war. It matured into nourishment in a season of hunger. Now it enters a season of shared knowledge and sovereign innovation.
When the ribbons are cut at Los Baños on Sept. 21, it will not just inaugurate a research facility. It will tell a story of what two countries can accomplish when genuine gratitude is transformed into an enduring partnership for generations to come.
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Lee Dong-gy is the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Philippines.