MANILA, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines and Nigeria have agreed to enhance the existing mechanism of economic cooperation, as well as on aquaculture and anti-drug trafficking, a senior Philippine foreign official said here Friday.

Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Enrique Manalo met on Wednesday with the Nigerian delegation headed by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Ambassador Olukunle Bamgbose in Manila during the Third Joint Commissions Meeting (JCM) in Manila.

"To this end, the two sides discussed new proposals to collaborate in the areas of agriculture, aquaculture, trade, tourism and youth development, among others," Manalo said in a statement.

"The Philippines signified its interest to cooperate with Nigeria in combatting transnational crime, particularly in the area of anti-drug trafficking, as this supports the government's anti-illegal drugs campaign," Manalo said.

He added Manila also proposed to establish bilateral linkages in the aquaculture sector as a way to address food security issues.

The Nigerian delegation highlighted the need for more exchanges of business delegations to strengthen current trade and investment relations, he said.

The Nigerian side also expressed their desire to enhance partnerships in the field of education, both for higher education and technical and vocational training, Manalo said.

Philippine-Nigeria diplomatic relations was established in August 1962. In 2017, trade between the two countries totalled 4.81 million U.S. dollars.