AMBASSADOR of India to the Philippines Shambhu Kumaram said his country is excited to cooperate with the administration of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s administration also with emphasis on agriculture.

“When we look at India and the Philippines, centuries of interactions, and the very similar nature of our societies, when we look at the fact that our farmers are in similar condition, no access to credit and the open market, too many intermediaries, natural disasters hampering harvest, it is extremely perilous. But, as we saw during the pandemic, unless we have a functioning agriculture system, our countries will have to face issues of instability,” Kumaram said in his speech during the recent General Assembly and Philippine Business Conference on Agriculture Cooperation by the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc.

“Let me just say, when I had the honor of calling the President-elect Bongbong Marcos, we spoke on the broader context of the India-Philippines relationship,” he said.

Kumaram said that besides agriculture, he sees Philippine-India cooperation in national security and health.

“He [Marcos] was very keen on asking some of India manufacturing capacities in the pharmaceutical space,” the ambassador said.

He further said that his discussion on agriculture with Marcos was fruitful, also taking into account increasing digitalization in governance and the economy as well.

“In this age right now, we are living in what we call a knowledgebased economy, which means that every government sector must be digital, and with regards to this matter, India can greatly help the Philippines. Hence the agreement: from seeds to satellites and looking ahead, at the strategic geography of the Indo-Pacific, we would still like to ensure agriculture cooperation is a central pillar of our engagement,” Kumaram pointed out.