Ilocos Norte, Hawaii revive talks for ties

LAOAG CITY, Philippines—Ilocos Norte provincial officials have started talks with their counterparts in Hawaii and the Ilocano community there to revive sisterhood ties to boost cooperation in agriculture and education.

The Ilocos Norte provincial board on Monday passed a resolution requesting Hawaii Rep. Rida Cabanilla and Hawaii Sen. Brickwood Galuteria to revive the sister state-province relationship and encourage Hawaiian-Ilocanos to rediscover their roots as part of the bicentennial celebration of Ilocos Norte in 2018.

Board Member Da Vinci Crisostomo said the Ilocos Norte government wanted to revive the exchange of practices in promoting sustainable agriculture and education excellence, including tourism and cultural activities.

Last week, Vice Gov. Angelo Barba visited Hawaii and met with Ilocano groups there to renew ties.

The provincial government is also offering special incentive packages for balikbayan (returning Filipinos) should they wish to invest in the province.

In 2002, then Gov. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and then Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle forged a sisterhood agreement between Ilocos Norte and Hawaii. Leilanie Adriano, Inquirer Northern Luzon