Vice President Sara Duterte has expressed her support for proposals to strengthen the Halal industries in the Philippines to better serve Muslims and bring more tourists to the country.

BILATERAL MEETINGS - Vice President Sara Duterte holds separate meetings with Brunei Darussalam Ambassador Megawati Manan (left) and Malaysian Ambassador Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino (right) on May 18, 2023. (Inday Sara Duterte/Facebook)

Halal means food and products permitted by the laws of Islam.

Duterte said this following her separate courtesy calls with Malaysian Ambassador Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino and Brunei Darussalam Ambassador Megawati Manan on Thursday, May 18.

During their meetings, both envoys said boosting the halal industries in the Philippines would make the country more friendly for Muslim communities.

The Vice President said she agreed to establish programs to strengthen the Halal industry to serve Muslims and foreign tourists better.

“With regard to the Halal industry, yes, I agree with you. When I was mayor of Davao City, one of our bigger projects was about tourism. And we were missing out a segment of tourists because there’s much [of them who asked] how strong is the Halal industry,” she told Megawati.

“Admittedly, we did not have before, so we created the Davao City Halal Council to discuss how we can strengthen the Halal industry in Davao City,” she added.

The Vice President also shared that before her term as mayor ended, the city government was able to establish a Halal slaughterhouse.

Ambassador Malik told the Vice President that the potential of Halal industries, including cosmetics, may be explored.

The envoys also presented interests in nurturing respective areas of cooperation in education, tourism development, trade and industry, and deepening the bilateral relations between countries.

The Vice President, who is also Secretary of Education and the current president of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), shared with Ambassadors Malik and Megawati her proposed visits to SEAMEO member countries during her Council Presidency.