The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is set to launch the National Halal Strategy which aims to generate P230 billion in investments, create 20,000 jobs in five years and support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in becoming part of a global halal ecosystem.
Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual said the plan seeks to address the growing demand for halal products and services in the Philippines and from members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas.
“The Philippines plans to expand its participation in the halal economy by being more active in this multi-trillion-dollar industry that is growing at a rapid pace. Considering the growing Muslim population of 1.9 billion people, the global halal market is estimated to reach $7.7 trillion in market value by 2025, up from $3.2 trillion in 2015,” Pascual said.
The DTI will lead the inter-agency task force to create a roadmap to position the Philippines as the most halal-friendly trade and investment hub in Asia Pacific.
The task force will be composed of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF), Department of Agriculture (DA), the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Department of Tourism (DOT), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA).
Pascual said halal development forms part of the DTI’s four priorities on promoting regional development; attaining food security; upgrading, upskilling and upsizing micro, small and medium enterprises; and enabling job skills matching and skills upgrading.
It is a comprehensive plan that involves not only food and food-related products, but also Islamic finance, halal-friendly travel and tourism, modest fashion, halal pharmaceuticals and halal cosmetics.
The Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC), an attached agency under the DTI, recently signed an agreement with the business community in CALABARZON for halal training.
More than 100 MSMEs in Marawi are also being prepared to be halal-certified as part of the economic rebuilding of the Maranao people.
The DTI also signed a partnership deal with the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s (BARMM) Ministry of Trade, Investment and Tourism (MTIT) to promote halal goods and services. The partnership will create jobs through social entrepreneurship and local tourism, train entrepreneurs and revive the country’s creative sector.
The DTI also revealed plans to upgrade local slaughterhouses as halal-certified.
The DTI will launch the Halal Convention Expo at the SMX Convention Center on Nov. 21, 2023.