By Danielle Gabriel
DANISH Ambassador Jan Top Christensen said that, despite being a Third World country, the Philippines possesses tremendous potential in scaling the world economic ladder.
Christensen, whose first stint in the country was operating a refugee camp in Palawan in the late 1980s, said 12 years ago the Philippine economy did not show enough promise. However, he said, with the economic reforms and attempts at having a more transparent governance, the potential is boundless.
“The Philippines has moved up the international corruption index. It is an enormous jump on the ladder and an impressive work that has been done. International market and foreign companies want to know more about the Philippines because of a number of positive reforms the country has lined up,” Christensen said.
A man who knows his way around
Not a newbie to the ups and downs of the Philippines, Christensen worked as head of a Vietnamese refugee camp under the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNCHR) in Palawan. It helped him understand the realities in Asia and the consequences of war.
Ambassador Christensen said his work in the Philippines, from 1987 to 1990, allowed him to apply the concepts he learned in international relations at the University of Aarhus in Denmark.
“The job in the Philippines was more on the operational level. I applied international relations while I was a professor in Denmark, but that was more from a theoretical point,” Christensen said.
He added: “I found being the profile of being head of a refugee camp exciting. It had a broader function and made me deal solving different problems in camp. I was also working very closely with Philippine authorities so it gave me knowledge of the culture and society.”
An inclination toward traveling and exploring, not only places but cultures and society behaviors, has also been a driving force for Christensen to take up the foreign-affairs path.
Ambassador Christensen, who hails from Funen, Denmark, said that growing up, he had always cherished vacation trips with his family and felt the need to see beyond Nordic lines.
“There was no pressure from my family that made me take this career path but I think it was something I found during holidays, when we would go on trips as a family. As a young kid, I wanted to see what was beyond Danish borders.” Christensen said, adding that traveling on his own was a very useful way to learn about himself, his limits and the possibilities that exist.
Sure enough, the zest for travel made it easier for the ambassador to pursue what he wanted in life.
After touring countries, like Africa, Australia, Thailand, Yugoslavia, Turkey and the rest of Europe, before his university term started, Christensen decided not to take up medicine in favor of another kind of science—the one dealing with social complexities.
“I considered being a doctor when I was young. Because being a medical doctor would let you know the cause of a disease and then how to treat it. But then, I realized I wanted to do that to society. Try to understand the world better. Figure out the symptoms and help in finding a cure,” the ambassador said.
After studying international relations and economics at the University of Aarhus in Denmark from 1970 to 1978, Christensen went on to become one of its associate professor for four years, until 1983.
He worked as refugee camp head in Palawan before being assigned back in Denmark as the Asia division head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He also became an ambassador to Lebanon for five years before reopening the embassy in the Philippines last year.
A bright future ahead
With the newly opened Danish Embassy in Bonifacio Global City, Ambassador Christensen expressed enthusiasm on stronger ties between the Philippines and Denmark, while saying that initiatives started by the government to fight corruption has led the Philippines to a point of no return.
“It would not be possible for the country to go back to the old mess where it was dominated by corruption. Politics is opening up and becoming more transparent, so I do not see the country going back to the dark ages,” Christensen said.
The ambassador also noted the vast changes that happened to Palawan 25 years after he first went to the province.
From having unpaved roads and mere huts as local markets to now boasting shopping malls, airports and having a wonder of the world under its belt, Palawan for him has come a long way.
With a steadily growing economy and the signing of key economic laws like the Philippine Competition Act, which will enable fair play in the free market and ensuring quality goods at competitive prices, the country is expected to attract more companies and ensure an improved business climate.
Ambassador Christensen also commended the country’s work force, saying that the primary factors that lead foreign investors to the Philippines is the abundance of skilled labor that do not only excel in their chosen profession but are also proficient in English and have corporate loyalty.
“More Danish companies, enterprises and factories are now curious about the Philippines. Aside from language proficiency, they have a high culture adaptability, which makes them understand how business owners want to run the company,” Christensen said.
As far as bilateral trade, Denmark is exporting five times than the Philippines is importing but seeing the country’s growth, Ambassador Christensen believes the country will catch up in no time.
Data from the Danish Embassy show Danish exports to the Philippines in 2014 amounted to $185 million, with imports from the Philippines at $44 million.
Denmark is one of the world’s leading countries when it comes to education, health care and government transparency. Their major exports to the Philippines include pharmaceuticals, processed food and dairy, electronic products and transport equipment.
Without any direct flights between the Philippines and Denmark, tourism has yet to show significant increase. Reports show an estimated 14,000 Danish tourist arrivals and roughly 8,000 Filipinos traveling to Denmark yearly.
Despite the tourism figures, Ambassador Christensen said the cultural connection between Denmark and the Philippines is bounded by the maritime industry.
“Being seafarers make us curious about what is beyond the horizon. You find Filipinos all over the world and you also see Danish, not as many as Filipinos, but still there are. It is not just travel that we are concerned about. It is also trading and engaging different cultures,” Christensen said.
Image credits: Jimbo Albano