| |
HRH Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium is representing His Majesty the King of the Belgians. His Royal Highness is accompanied by his wife HRH Crown Princess Mathilde of Belgium.
Crown Prince Philippe is the eldest son of HM King Albert II and HM Queen Paola. Born April 15, 1960 in Brussels, the Crown Prince was appointed Heir Apparent, Duke of Brabant in 1993.
The Crown Prince graduated from Cadet School of Belgium and holds a Master's in public administration from Stanford University (the US) and a diploma from the National Defence College of Belgium.
At present, the Crown Prince is honorary president of the Belgian Foreign Trade Commission. In 2004, he led more than 500 Belgian business persons on a visit to China. The Crown Prince has visited many countries in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Europe to observe issues on youth, education, culture and astronomy.
The Crown Prince is married to HRH Crown Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant. A daughter of a noble Polish family, the Crown Princess, now 33, graduated from the Universite Catholique de Louvain in psychology with Honours. She is interested in helping train children with hearing problems and also in such social issues as children's rights, women's rights, education, health, poverty and good governance. In 2000, she established the Princess Mathilde Fund to support the poor. The Crown Princess is fluent in French, Dutch, Italian and English. She likes classical and pop songs, playing piano, tennis and swimming and reading.
The Crown Prince and the Crown Princess visited Thailand in 2001 and were granted an audience with His Majesty King Bhumibol.
The Kingdom of Belgium: Located in western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands. The government is a federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch. The current ruler is HM King Albert II.
Belgium offers a high quality of life to its population of around 10 million. Illiteracy is almost non-existent, and all citizens over the age of 18 are required to vote. With few natural resources, Belgium's economy is highly dependent on world market trends. Belgium and Thailand established formal relations in 1883 and have continued to maintain good relations, especially in development projects.
|
