The Head of the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Philippine Halal Industry Development Office, Aleem Siddiqui M. Guiapal, will be bringing ‘Halal Friendly Philippines’ to the Middle East. Mr. Guiapal will serve as a panelist in the “Power of Digitalization, Collaboration, and Imagination: A Change Driver – Tapping into the Emerging Trends Shaping the Food Industry” talk at Gulfood 2024.
Gulfood 2024 is the largest international trade fair for the Food & Beverage industry that will be held this February 19 to 23, 2024 at the Dubai World Trade Center. This event will be attended by retailers, suppliers, distributors, renowned chefs, and thought leaders around the world to connect and discuss the current trends and latest innovations for the future of the F&B industry.
Aleem Siddiqui Guiapal, as the head of the Philippine Halal Industry Development Office under DTI, has been involved in investment promotions for the past 15 years – working with both the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the private sectors to generate exports.
“There is potential in public-private partnership and collaboration is one of the strategies in making the Philippines a premier halal-friendly hub in the Asia Pacific to generate 230B investment and 120,000 jobs,” he said.
As a panelist, Mr. Guiapal will be sharing the initiative of DTI in terms of driving to engage the private sector as a key player in making the Philippines a halal gateway and destination. He will also be sharing the current Halal metrics, as well as the market niche in the Philippines, which runs at around 12 million stakeholders.
“Number one, there is a demand in the Philippines. We have captured a direct market of about 12 million Muslim Filipinos and tourists for the halal sector. Second, the Philippines is a competitive gateway for Halal. It does not just serve as a venue, but we also have a local demand of about $120 million Halal food. Halal is a sunrise industry in the Philippines,” he said.
The ‘Halal Friendly Philippines’ is a campaign initiated by the Department of Trade and Industry to establish the Philippines as a customer-focused, collaborative, comprehensive, and competitive Halal gateway, and destination in the Asia-Pacific. This is one of the priority initiatives of DTI Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual under the visionary leadership of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Aside from being a panelist at Gulfood 2024, he will also be speaking at a stakeholder summit organized by one of the accredited Halal Certification bodies in the Philippines which will be happening this February 22, 2024. On February 26, there will also be a DTI Trade and Investment Forum with the UAE Halal Trade and Marketing Center, which consists of a series of business-to-business meetings with prospective investors.
“To our kababayans in the United Arab Emirates, we look forward to your support with our brand campaign of ‘Halal-Friendly Philippines’,” Mr. Guiapal said.
“We salute your efforts, our modern heroes! In the future when you go back to our country, we wish to welcome you, not just as employees but also as key players, businessmen, and entrepreneurs in the Halal industry,” he concluded.
“The Power of Digitalization, Collaboration, and Imagination: A Change Driver – Tapping into the Emerging Trends Shaping the Food Industry” which Mr. Guiapal will take part in will be happening this February 19, 2024, from 2:20 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
