Former President Fidel V. Ramos graciously accepted the invitation to lead the Board of Senior Advisers of Asia Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation.
President Ramos, who served as the country’s 12th President from 1992-1998, is known as one of the most pro-active presidents with regard to foreign policy. Following the closure of the American military facilities in 1991, he forged closer diplomatic and economic ties with the ASEAN countries, including with Malaysia which had heretofore refrained from sending its prime minister on state visits to Manila in light of the Sabah disputes. Under his watch, peace talks with the Moro National Liberation Front were concluded with the help of Indonesia and the Organization of Islamic States. At the same time, he preserved security ties with the US by endorsement of the Visiting Forces Agreement and the AFP Modernization Law. His government negotiated the first bilateral agreements with China and Vietnam on the South China Sea, containing principles for a code of conduct. He also presided over passage of the 1995 Migrant Workers Act.
President Ramos was a founding member and until recently, Chairman of the Council of Advisors of the Boao Forum for Asia. Currently, he is Chairman of the Ramos Peace and Development Foundation (RPDEV), Lifetime Honorary President of the Centrists Democrats International (CDI), Member of the Global Leadership Forum and the Club of Madrid; Chairman Emeritus of the Maritime League and of the Lakas Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) Party, Honorary President of the Human Development Network (HDN) Philippines, among many others.
Other senior advisers of APPFI include Ambassador Carlos Chan (Liwayway Marketing, Special Envoy to China), Dr Cesar Virata (RCBC, former NEDA Chief and Finance Secretary), and Mr Alfonso Uy (Golden Star Equities, Soong Ching Ling Foundation).