DFA Champions Halal Industry with Virtual Workshop for Embassies, Consulates in the Middle East, Asia, Africa

PASAY CITY, 05 November 2021 — In an effort to expand awareness on opportunities in the global halal economy, the Department of Foreign Affairs’ Office of International Economic Relations (DFA-OIER) organized a two-day Halal Industry Development and Promotion Workshop for Foreign Service Posts (FSPs) held virtually from 03 to 04 November 2021.

The maiden event garnered the participation of key FSPs in Asia, the Middle East and Africa which have predominantly Muslim populations, allowing over 90 Philippine diplomats to gain a better understanding of the fundamentals of the local halal ecosystem, exchange information and best practices, and learn from experienced hands in halal industry promotion and development.

Experts from the government, the academe, and the private sector shared their expertise to energize the discourse on the multi-faceted halal industry, highlighted by keynote remarks from Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Lourdes Yparraguirre, Trade

Undersecretary Abdulgani M. Macatoman Tourism Undersecretary Myra Paz Valderrosa-Abubakar and Agriculture Undersecretary Zamzamin L. Ampatuan.

In her remarks, Undersecretary Yparraguirre underscored the growing demand for halal products and services worldwide, and exhorted all stakeholders, including the DFA, to adopt a whole-of-government and whole-of-nation approach to maximize the benefits of the halal industry as an emerging engine of economic growth.

Key topics, such as the local halal ecosystem, top global markets and producers in the halal economy, existing legal and government institutional mechanisms to promote the halal industry, the halal value chain, and emerging sectors such as tourism, banking and finance, and non-food products (cosmetics, wellness). The presentations and exchanges sought to identify strengths and opportunities, and to recommend ways forward, as the Philippines aims to increase its presence in the halal economy both regionally and globally. END