(Photo caption: Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. Francisco Noel R. Fernandez III join the officers and organizers of the Ontario Silliman University Alumni Association (ONSUAA) at the Dumaguete Fiesta celebration in East York.)

The Ontario Silliman University Alumni Association (ONSUAA) celebrated the Fiesta of Dumaguete last Saturday, 5 November, at East York in the Greater Toronto Area. During the festivities, Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. Francisco Noel R. Fernandez III of the Philippine Embassy in Ottawa challenged Sillimanians across Canada to step up to positions of leadership in their provincial regulatory associations and parliamentary ridings. This call was in line with the Credentials Recognition in Canada (CRC) Project of Philippine Posts in Canada (PPC).

Citing that 2.59% of Canada’s population have Filipino heritage numbering 957,355, Fernandez likewise encouraged attendees to pass on their Filipino heritage to the younger generation in order to sustain the visibility of the Filipino diaspora across Canada.

The CRC Project involves the implementation of 37 projects under its Phase 2 seeking to facilitate the recognition of academic and work credentials of Filipino professionals in Canada. One of the projects encourages Filipino professionals to seek election to professional colleges mandated to regulate the practice of profession in the provinces.

PPC is composed of the Philippine Embassy in Ottawa and the Philippine Consulates General in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto.