Philippine Ports Authority and Port of Antwerp-Bruges sign five-year modernization cooperation agreement
The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) and the Port of Antwerp-Bruges International (PoABI) officially signed a five-year memorandum of cooperation. The two parties will carry out comprehensive cooperation in the fields of port operation optimization, digital transformation, smart port construction, green shore power standards and PPP public-private partnership project governance, aiming to accelerate the modernization and upgrading of the Philippines' national port hubs and explore international investment opportunities.
The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) and the Port of Antwerp-Bruges International (PoABI), Europe’s top port management organization, officially signed a five-year memorandum of cooperation (MOU) on September 22, 2026. The agreement establishes a long-term strategic partnership between the two parties in port development, digital transformation, operations management and promotion of international best practices, marking a key step towards all-round modernization of the port logistics network in the Philippine Islands.
According to the terms of the memorandum, PPA Director General Jay Santiago and PoABI Business Development Director Maartje Driessens signed on behalf of both parties. The cooperation framework focuses on eight core pillars: port operations, planning and optimization, digital technology implementation, sustainable green transformation, safe production, service quality improvement, governance structure improvement, and professional capacity building.
PPA Director-General Santiago pointed out at the signing ceremony that the cooperation will substantially cover terminal operation efficiency improvement, smart port scenario application, operational risk management and control, green and low-carbon port operation, service quality management and standardized governance. In addition, the framework will also focus on improving the Philippines' early-stage readiness capabilities in public-private partnership (PPP) port projects, port crisis and emergency response, comprehensive cruise home port development and overall port strategic planning, and actively explore potential international investment and financing opportunities around the archipelago's port infrastructure construction.
PoABI business development director Driesens said that as the Philippine port industry accelerates its comprehensive upgrade in infrastructure, digitalization and safety standards, there is broad room for mutual learning of knowledge and experience between the two parties. Drisens particularly appreciated PPA’s recent solid results in the renovation of passenger and cargo facilities, disaster-resistant engineering design, promotion of the Online Reservation Assistance System (ORAS), real-time data monitoring, and the deployment of shore power facilities and renewable energy. She pointed out that European ports and the Philippines can quickly connect best practices in green energy transformation and digital intelligent dispatch.
In addition, the cooperation agreement will also extend to port security management and cross-department data interconnection, focusing on promoting the seamless connection between the port system and government supervision platforms such as customs and coast guard, thereby simplifying the customs clearance process, significantly reducing the detention time of container cargo, and reducing the cost of full-link trade and integrated logistics performance.
Belgian Ambassador to the Philippines Vladislava Iordanova and a number of maritime diplomats attended and witnessed the signing ceremony. By introducing PoABI's international expertise in global port consulting, personnel training and franchising, the throughput efficiency and berthing turnover capacity of major import and export ports and regional feeder terminals in the Philippines are expected to achieve a structural leap in the next five years.