US to allocate more funds for PH exchange programs – Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (left) and Bryan Benitez Mccelland, founder and CEO of Bambike in Intramuros, Manila. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

MANILA, Philippines — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday said Washington will earmark more resources to sustain its exchange program with Manila. 

Blinken said this is in line with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and President Joe Biden’s plan of carrying out even more people-to-people exchanges between both nations.

“We’re dedicating even more resources to the exchange programs over the next decade,” Blinken told former exchange program delegates during his brief stop in Intramuros, Manila.

Blinken stopped by in the Walled City to meet five Filipino participants of Washington-sponsored exchange programs, including an entrepreneur behind handmade bamboo bikes that become a regular fixture in the historical area. 

Bryan Benitez Mccelland, founder and CEO of Bambike, said the US-sponsored exchange program was instrumental in his ecotourism enterprise.

In 2019, Mccelland was a delegate of Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative’s workshop for eco and sustainable tourism held in Laos.

“It helped broaden my perspective and inspired me to continue down this path so we can increase world-class ecotourism in the Philippines,” Mccelland told INQUIRER.net in an interview after Blinken’s visit.

Mccelland also said Blinken was “intrigued” on the artisan bikes made from local materials in a factory employing about two dozen individuals.

“He (Blinken) said he wants one,” Mccelland said, also noting that former US President Barack Obama owned a Bambike.

Blinken was on a two-day official visit in Manila and the penultimate engagement in the capital city’s oldest district comes as a breather before his visit in Malacañan Palace.

Prior to this, Blinken had a joint press conference with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo in Pasay City.

“One of the things that I love having the opportunity to do is to actually spend a little bit of time with folks who have been part of our exchange programs,” Blinken said.

He noted that over the eight decades of US exchange programs, more than 60 went on to win Nobel Prizes while thousands became leaders in academics, business, science, sports, culture and the arts. 

 “It’s a pretty good gauge of what each of you is already doing and is likely to do,” Blinken told the delegates.