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Asia
Virtually no other Asian country has been so heavily influenced by the West during its history as the Philippines, which was named after King Philip II of Spain. After some three hundred years of Spanish dominion, followed by almost five decades of American rule, the Philippines finally achieved independence in 1946. Since then, the country has been strongly oriented towards the USA. The United States is the Philippines' main market; many Filipinos live and work there.
With over 7,000 islands, the ecosystem of the Philippines archipelago is among the richest in species diversity anywhere in the world. But overuse and destructive exploitation have caused serious environmental problems. The country's economy is shaped by its growing electronics industry and service sector in the cities. Yet around 40 per cent of the population live from subsistence agriculture, many in extreme poverty. The country's economy and political systems are dominated by a few influential families. The gap between the small number of rich people and the majority, many of whom are very poor, is wide.
The conflicts with separatist Muslim and Maoist groups which have already claimed thousands of lives have flared up again in recent years. However, the government of the Philippines is currently engaged in peace negotiations with the various factions. The quest for peaceful solutions is one area of the cooperation between the Philippines and Germany.
German Embassy

German Embassy in the Philippines
25/F Tower 2, RCBC Plaza
6819 Ayala Avenue
Makati City
Metro Manila
Phone: +63 / 2 / 702 30 00
Fax: +63 / 2 / 702 30 15






