Zamboanga City (20 October) —
As part of its advocacy campaign for Muslim consumers following the
holy month of Ramadhan in September, the Department of Trade and
Industry will be conducting a series of halal advocacy activities in
Zamboanga City from October 20 to 23, 2008.
Dr. Sitti Amina M.
Jain, Assistant Regional Director of DTI-9 and designated DTI National
Coordinator on Halal said that these activities are part of the greater
objective of institutionalizing halal as a way of life among Muslim
consumers in the Philippines.
The recent
promulgation of the Philippine National Standards on Halal Food, she
said was one big step towards that direction as it helps ensure the
strict observance of halal guidelines starting from the production
phase to the processing, packaging and even in the
handling/transporting of finished food products. In this way, halal is
even more stringent than ISO, she added.
Dr. Jain disclosed
that the newly created National Halal Accreditation Board of the
Philippines (NHABPhil) will hold its first organizational development
workshop in Zamboanga City on October 21-23, 2008 at the Lantaka Hotel
By the Sea. Ulamas representing the various regions of the country who
were elected as officers and members of NHABPhil will be the main
participants of the workshop.
Prior to the
NHABPhil workshop, the DTI will also spearhead the conduct of the Halal
Advocacy Seminar at the same venue in October 20,. The general
membership meeting and induction of officers of the Western Mindanao
Halal Consumers Association (WMHCA) will be among the highlights of the
said advocacy seminar.
Further, on October
21, another big event – the Halal Consumers Advocacy Forum, will be
held at the Summit Center of the Universidad de Zamboanga. The Summit
Center was chosen as the venue because of the big number of expected
participants to the event.
Speakers to the said
forums are known Islamic luminaries of the Philippines such as Aleem
Walid Abubakar, Chairman of the National Halal Accreditation Board who
will talk on the topic “Signficance of Halal to Muslim Consumers”; Mr.
Jamil Hamza T. Olermo, Founder of the Mindanao Halal Resource Center
who will discuss “Halal Products, Ingredients and Derivatives; and
DOST-9’s Engr. Mahmud L. Kingking, elected President of the WMHCA who
will speak on “The Science of Halal”.
An open forum will
follow after the lectures to give the audience an opportunity to ask
questions and to be further clarified on the topics discussed.
The forum is
conducted in coordination with the Universidad de Zamboanga through Dr.
Ramael L. Saturinas, Program Chair on Economics of the said university.
(DTI/PIA ZC)
