Canada and Philippines sign trade and labour agreements, targeting bilateral deal by year's end

Canada and the Philippines have signed agreements on energy, natural resources, labour, and tourism Thursday as the two countries work toward a bilateral trade deal by the time Prime Minister Mark Carney heads to Manila for a November summit.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. made his first visit to Canada in more than a decade. The signing ceremony included a memorandum seeking to strengthen protections for Filipino workers in Canada and expand labour mobility across sectors.

"Filipino workers make extraordinary contributions to communities," Carney said, citing care workers and nurses. "We will make sure they are treated fairly, can work safely and have their rights respected."

Marcos emphasized that strong people-to-people ties already exist between the countries and that both can develop "a mutually beneficial talent pipeline for the future." He called on Canada's federal and provincial governments to work together to allow Filipino professionals to practise their professions in Canada.

Carney underscored that Filipino-Canadians are "at the very heart" of Canada, with nearly one million people identifying as Filipino in the 2021 census. He said the two countries share values and self-reinforcing momentum, building on defence agreements already in place.

Marcos will chair the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit later this year, a bloc with whom Canada is also conducting trade negotiations. According to analysts, the Marcos visit demonstrates that Canada's four-year-old Indo-Pacific strategy, launched in 2022, is beginning to yield results. The relationship has broadened from deep people-to-people connections into a partnership spanning trade, investment, energy, maritime security, cybersecurity, and defence.