The Universal Islamic Center (UIC), a Davao-based Muslim advocacy group, held its 8th Philippine Halal Trade and Tourism Expo (PHTTE) last 25-27 May 2023 in SMX Convention Center, SM Lanang, Davao City, Philippines.
Headed by Ms. Marilou Ampuan, the PHTTE is an annual advocacy event by the UIC to promote and support the development of the Philippine halal industry.
Running on its 8th year, the 2023 PHTTE was attended by foreign dignitaries from Indonesia and Malaysia, national and local government officials, halal-certifying bodies, consultants and stakeholders, and halal-certified and Muslim-owned businesses from Metro Manila, Davao region, and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
The Philippine Halal Industry
The annual halal expo is one of the various private sector-led initiatives to support national government agencies in positioning the Philippines to become a major player in the global halal economy.
Since the early 2000s, the Philippines has been viewed as a potential major exporter of halal-certified products; however, due to disagreements between public and private stakeholders, the Philippines is still catching up with its Southeast Asian neighbors.
With the implementation of Republic Act (RA) No. 10817 in 2017 which created the Philippine Halal Export Development and Promotion Board, Philippine-based halal exporters were hopeful that they will access more markets abroad, particularly in the Middle East.
Referring to the 2022 State of the Global Islamic Economy Report, Atty. Datubimban Pangonotan Jr. who currently serves as the Halal Section Head of the Department of Trade and Industry reported during the PHTTE’s second day on 26 March 2023 that, for the first time, the Philippines was included in the list of countries having a strong halal industry presence. Based on the report, the Philippines is one of the top 15 non-Muslim countries increasingly known as halal exporters in the East and Southeast Asian region along with Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.
The recent visit of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim last March 2023 generated a renewed fervor to further develop the Philippine halal industry as Malaysia aims to explore more opportunities for trade through halal cooperation.
Davao City as a Halal Center
Davao City serves as one of the most successful local governments in the Philippines in terms of local halal industry development. Since 2010, the city government of Davao had legislated a total of four halal ordinances aiming to address issues on certification, labeling, and business promotion.
In 2017, an executive order issued by former Mayor and current Vice President Sara Duterte created the Davao City Halal Industry Development Council composed of key national and local government offices as well as private halal stakeholders from the business and religious sectors.
The perceived success of Davao City’s local halal industry is frequently attributed to the harmonious relationship between Muslim and non-Muslim residents of the city. Recognizing that Davao City’s population is composed of various ethnic groups and religious confessions, former Davao City Mayor and former President Rodrigo Duterte created additional venues of representation and participation for the 11 ethnolinguistic groups of Davao, eight of which profess the Islamic religion. Through the new institutionalization of the so-called “deputy mayors” who are represented in the local executive council called Sangguniang Panlungsod, it became easy for Davao City to manage tensions, conflicts, and misunderstandings among halal stakeholders within its territory.
Davao City’s deputy mayors served as one of the highlights of the 2023 Philippine halal expo as they were allowed to showcase their traditional foods prepared in a halal-compliant way to foreign dignitaries and national government officials present during the event. While the three Deputy Mayors are not Muslim, the UIC ensured that their showcased traditional delicacies were prepared according to Islamic religious requirements through the assistance provided by the Davao-based halal culinary kitchen, IChef.
Halal is Beyond Food
This year’s halal expo continuously clarified that halal is not only confined to food but covers the whole Islamic lifestyle.
Booths present during the halal expo are not only from companies in the food manufacturing sector but also participated by Philippine-based firms involved in cosmetics, food supplements, travel, and banking.
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