In his capacity of honorary Chairman of the Belgian Foreign Trade Board, H.R.H. Prince Philippe presided over an economic mission in China in November 1996. He will again come to China for the same function in May 2000.

Souvenir picture of H.R.H. Prince Philippe and Miss Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, on 13 September 1999, on the occasion of the announcement of the engagement. The marriage will be celebrated on December 4.
 

CURRICULUM VITAE

Prince Philippe was born in Brussels on April 15, 1960. He is the first child of King Albert II and Queen Paola and is thus first in line to succeed to the Throne. As such, he also bears the title of Duke of Brabant.
 

Education and training in Belgium:

• Collège Saint-Michel in Brussels
• Abdijschool van Zevenkerken in Sint-Andries-Brugge
• 1978-1980: Royal Military Academy
• 1981-1982: training as a pilot of the Belgian Air Force
• 1982-1983: training as a paratrooper
• Promoted to the rank of Captain in 1983 and to the rank of Colonel in 1989
   

Education abroad:

• April-June 1983: Constitutional History at Trinity College, Oxford (UK)
• September 1983 - June 1985: Stanford University (California) where he graduated as Master of Arts in political science.
   

Prince Philippe has a personal House and has received a civil list since 1992.

He was appointed Honorary President of the Belgian Foreign Trade Office in August 1993, succeeding his father in this role. In October 1993, he was also appointed President of the National Council for Sustainable Development.

As Honorary President of the Belgian Office of Foreign Trade, the Prince leads economic and trade missions abroad and prepares these missions by regular meetings with the Ministers and the representatives of all companies and institutions involved in these missions, as well as numerous visits to export-oriented companies.

The Prince also attaches particular importance to encouraging private and public initiatives aimed at promoting the image of the country abroad.

In addition to these specific roles, the Prince, as Crown Prince, has to keep himself informed about all aspects of Belgian society.

He therefore maintains a wide variety of contacts, not only with representatives of commercial and economic institutions, but also with students, universities, schools and social or cultural institutions ...

He carries out a self-planned program of visits to various parts of the country and to major cities. He focuses on being in touch with all sections of the population, in particular young people.

The Prince also made several study tours to the Americas, Africa, Asia and Central and Eastern Europe. His travels abroad also included working visits to various international institutions, such as UN agencies in New York and Geneva, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. The Prince takes a keen interest in developments in Europe and keeps himself closely informed about European Union matters. Through on-site personal participation at projects of non-governmental organisations, he has shown his strong commitment to humanitarian and international cooperation.

On September 10, 1999 the engagement of H.R.H. Prince Philippe with Miss Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz was announced. The marriage will be celebrated on December 4, 1999 in Brussels.