AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT SUPPORTS LEADERSHIP PROGRAM
FOR YOUNG INTERFAITH LEADERS
Thirty young leaders from various Christian, Muslim and Indigenous People’s groups across the Philippines recently took part in the 2008 Young Leaders Program, jointly organised by the Australian Embassy in Manila and the National Defense College of the Philippines. The eight-day program was designed to enhance the participants’ knowledge of effective governance and responsible leadership, including through the prism of interfaith dialogue. The participants were also given the opportunity to interact with various high-level government, religious and sectoral leaders and discuss the challenges and opportunities involved in peace-building. The program took place in Manila and Marawi city.
“The Australian Government is pleased to support this initiative which forms part of our efforts to help the Philippines develop the skills sets of future leaders and also to promote awareness of interfaith dialogue as a means of managing and resolving conflict,” Ambassador Rod Smith (seated, rightmost) said during the program’s formal launch. Also present at the launch were Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro (centre, seated) and NDCP President Commodore Carlos Agustin AFP (ret) (leftmost, seated) #