Philippine Cultural Diplomacy: Unraveling its Full Potential

Abstract

Cultural diplomacy plays a vital role in international affairs. It is defined as “the exchange of ideas, information, art, and other aspects of culture among nations and their peoples in order to foster mutual understanding.” It serves as an avenue through which states promote their national interests and build relationships with other nations. As the world becomes more globalized and interdependent, cultural diplomacy is becoming a vital tool in enhancing interaction within the international community. It creates a foundation of trust with other countries, which policymakers can build on to reach political, economic, and military agreements. It also provides a “positive agenda for cooperation inspite of policy differences, creates a neutral platform for people-to-people contact, and serves as a flexible, universally accepted approach towards countries where diplomatic relations have been strained.” As with other states, the Philippines recognizes the value of culture in its global affairs. This paper argues that, through its promotion of cultural diplomacy, the country is abandoning long-held assumptions that culture is inferior to politics. Because of this, it recommends that the Philippines mobilize its cultural diplomacy to boost its international status. This requires planning long-term strategies and implementing high-impact activities in an overarching program that will promote the country’s culture abroad. This paper also contends that, since politics and culture are essentially linked in international relations, the global promotion of cultural diplomacy rests not only in the hands of the Philippine government, but also among the Filipino public and other stakeholders.