The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) will draw on the expertise of Port of Antwerp-Bruges International (PoABI) to prepare its ports for public-private partnership (PPP) projects, sharpen crisis response, and push digitalization and green operations under a five-year cooperation agreement between the two port bodies.
PPA General Manager Jay Santiago and PoABI Head of Business Development Maartje Driessens signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which sets up a framework for knowledge exchange, capacity building, and adopting international best practices in the Philippine port sector.
Under the agreement, the two parties may cooperate on port operations, planning and optimization, port and terminal performance, digitalization and smart port applications, safety and operational risk management, sustainability and green port operations, service quality management, and operational governance.
Santiago said the partnership will also open doors to training in areas critical to the agency’s pipeline of private-sector-led port projects.
‘This will provide opportunities for capacity building on operational readiness for public-private partnership [PPP] port projects, port crisis and emergency response management, cruise port development, and port strategy, as well as the exploration of potential investment opportunities related to port development,’ Santiago said.
The collaboration, likewise, covers security and inter-agency integration, including efforts to link port systems with those of other government agencies to deliver more seamless services to port users.
For its part, PoABI said it sees strong room for knowledge exchange as the Philippine port sector pursues modernization in infrastructure, digitalization, sustainability, and safety.
‘The Philippine Ports Authority is clearly moving toward full modernization of its port network, including upgrading physical infrastructure, digitizing operations, and strengthening green and safety standards,’ Driessens said.
She cited several PPA initiatives that caught PoABI’s attention, including improved passenger facilities, disaster resilience engineering, the implementation of ORAS and real-time data, and sustainability measures such as shore-based power supply and renewable energy.
‘These are initiatives where we can definitely learn from each other’s best practices and accelerate our growth strategies,’ Driessens said.
She also flagged the PPA’s PPP initiatives as an area ripe for further knowledge sharing and international cooperation, noting that such approaches can help improve port performance and efficiency.
PoABI provides consultancy, advisory, training, and management solutions for port and terminal-related projects internationally.