As the Philippine Embassy continues to strengthen people-to-people ties with New Zealand, Ambassador Virginia H. Benavidez and Philippine Honorary Consul General to Auckland, Atty. Paulo Garcia attended the 20th Anniversary Gala Dinner of the Asia New Zealand Foundation on 30 October 2014 at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. The celebratory evening highlighted the accomplishments of the Foundation in the past two decades and the future ahead in deepening the knowledge and understanding of New Zealanders about Asia.

Sir Don McKinnon, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Philip Burdon, former Minister of Trade Negotiations founded the Asia New Zealand Foundation, a non-profit and non-partisan organization which continues to be at the forefront of promoting arts and culture, business, education, Leadership Network, media, research and Track II diplomacy engagement with the Asian region.

As former Secretary of Foreign Affairs Roberto Romulo, a member of the Foundation’s Honorary Advisers Board who visited Christchurch, Auckland and Wellington last July said “they consider themselves a small nation who envisions their future as part of the Asian region… New Zealand has indeed managed change and adapted to the changing world of the 21st century. From my perspective, New Zealand will become the model melting pot in Asia.”