The Philippines recently hosted three important events that would impact the direction of the mining industry in the Southeast Asian region. The meetings were participated in by delegates from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, ASEAN Federation of Mining Associations, and the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development.
Led by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Central Office, the Philippines played host to the 15th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Senior Officials Meeting on Minerals (ASOMM) Working Group Meetings, the 1st Meeting of the Board of Judges (BOJ) for the 2nd ASEAN Mineral Awards (AMA), and the 2nd Meeting of Mid-term Review Task Force of the ASEAN Minerals Cooperation Action Plan-III Phase 1: 2016-2020.
The meetings gathered representatives from Member-States to discuss the updates on the status of implementation of the various projects and activities under the four Working Groups, namely; Working Group on Trade and Investment in Minerals, Working Group on Mineral Information and Database, Working Group on Capacity Building in Minerals, and Working Group on Sustainable Mineral Development.
For its part, Thailand, the BOJ Chair for the 2nd AMA, presented the major outcomes of its meeting and the timelines for the 2nd AMA.
To recall, the Philippines’ Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation and OceanaGold (Philippines), Inc. bagged the “Best Practice in Minerals Mining” and “Best Practice in Minerals Processing” awards, respectively during the 1st AMA last November 30, 2017 in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar.
The meetings were held from May 2-4, 2018 at the Princesa Garden Island Resort and Spa in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.
By: Mineral Economics, Information and Publications Division
MGB Acting Director Wilfredo G. Moncano (1st row, middle) with the ASOMM delegates
MGB Assistant Director Atty. Danilo U. Uykieng (3rd from right), with the Board of Judges
MGB Acting Director Wilfredo G. Moncano with the ASOMM delegates
MGB Central Office staff