This Memorandum of Understanding entered into by and between the
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines, hereina-
fter referred to as TECO, represented by its Representative, Be-
njamin Jyn-Yuan Lo; and the Manila Economic and Cultural Office
in Taipei, hereinafter referred to as MECO, represented by its
Representative, Edgardo V. Espinosa

WITNESSETH：
WHEREAS, for purpose of renewal of the existing Memorandum of U-
nderstanding, the designated representative of the Council of L-
abor Affairs of the Republic of Chiha (ROC) is TECO and the des-
ignated representative of the Department of Labor and Employment
of the Republic of the Philippines (RP) is MECO.
WHEREAS, the TECO and MECO agree to continue the implementation
of a Special hiring program which enable employers in the Repub-
lic of China to hire Filipino workers without the intervention
of the manpower agencies from both parties;
WHEREAS, both parties in the spirit of mutual understanding and
cooperation,
shall ensure the proper documentation and facilitate the hiring
of qualified workers;
WHEREAS, both parties are committed to adopt measures to advance
workers' interest as well as that of employers;

NOW THEREFORE, for and in consideration of the foregoing premis-
es, and in order to effectively implement the special hiring pr-
ogram, both parties agree on the following points:
1.The special hiring program shall cover the following:
a) Hiring of professional, skilled and unskilled workers for co-
rporate employers
b) Processing facility for household workers and caretakers who
are classified as name hires
2.The special hiring program shall adopt a prescribed employment
contract for specific category of skills which are mutually a-
cceptable to both parties and are consistent with the prevail-
ing rules and regulations of both countries;
3.There shall be no discrimination between the special hiring f-
acility and existing hiring system through the manpower agenc-
ies;
4.The special hiring program shall be regarded as an option for
employers and shall not prevent the employers form hiring thr-
ough manpower agencies;
5.The schedule of expenses of workers hired through the special
hiring program shall be mutually agreed by both parties witho-
ut prejudice to the welfare of the workers and relevant laws
and rules of both sides;
6.The special hiring program shall be implemented through a pro-
cess of regular and continuing consultations between appropri-
ate authorities of both sides with the end view of coming out
with a mutually acceptable system, procedures and mechanism;
7.This Memorandum of Understanding shall be effective from the
date of signing by both parties thereto and shall have an eff-
ective period of two years, subject to extension by mutual ag-
reement of the parties. Either party may give written notice
at any time to terminate this Memorandum of Understanding .

Signed in Taipei, in duplicate in the English and Chinese langu-
ages, both texts being equally authentic, on this 20th day of M-
arch 2003, corresponding to the 20th day of March of the 93rd y-
ear of the Republic of China. In case of any divergence of inte-
rpretation the English text shall prevail.

For the Taipei Economic and For the Manila Economic and
Cultural Office in the Cultural Office in Taipei
Philippines

BENJAMIN JYH-YUAN LO EDGARDO V. ESPINOSA
Representative Representative

SIGNED IN THE PRESENCE OF :
CHU CHEN PARTICIA A. STO. TOMAS
Chairperson Secretary
Council of Labor Affairs Department of Labor and Employment
Republic of China Republic of the Philippines