STATE OF ASIA: Leni Robredo

Episode 3

Leni Robredo was the 14th Vice President of the Philippines, serving from 2016 to 2022. During her term, she reinvented the Office of the Vice President from a purely ceremonial one into an advocacy centered office, instituting poverty alleviation programs all over the country, focusing on programs on education, health, nutrition and food security, rural development, women empowerment and housing and resettlement. She was able to do this by focusing on the value of collaboration,  private-public partnerships and capacity building of the different stakeholders. The kind of leadership she has long believed in – ethical, empowering, efficient and inclusive – was further highlighted during the pandemic when the Office of the Vice President, under her helm, was in the forefront of Covid Response Operations.
Before her term as Vice President, she was a Member of the House of Representatives. Before she joined politics, she was a human rights lawyer, serving the basic sectors – farmers, fisherfolk, laborers, informal settlers, indigenous peoples, women and children. For almost a decade, she was part of an alternative law group called Sentro ng Alternatibong Lingap Panligal. After her term as Vice President, she set up Angat Pinas, Inc., a non government organization which will focus on education, health, community engagement, disaster response and rehabilitation. This NGO aims to become the biggest network of volunteers in the entire country.

In this episode of the STATE OF ASIA podcast, she talks about how a targeted disinformation campaign tripped up her run for President of the Philippines this spring, what could be done to combat fake news, and about the ambitious goals she sees ahead for ASEAN.

Robredo will be in Zurich to speak at the STATE OF ASIA conference on November 10, 2022, where she will be joined by many others of our trusted experts. For more details, the full speaker line-up, and information on how to get tickets, click here.

Robredo will also deliver an introduction at the inaugural STATE OF ASIA Address, on the evening of November 9, 2022, in Zurich. The address itself will be delivered by C. Raja Mohan, India's foremost foreign policy thinker. Tickets to this event are on sale here.

STATE OF ASIA podcast

episode 3 – published October 3, 2022

Host: Nico Luchsinger, Executive Director, Asia Society Switzerland
Producer: Remko Tanis, Programs and Editorial Manager, Asia Society Switzerland