The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is working on a halal financing scheme to help address the capital requirement of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and startups engaged in halal-oriented businesses.
Aleem Guiapal, project manager of the Halal Industry Development of the DTI, revealed the DTI MSME halal financing effort as the Philippines participate in the first World Islamic Entrepreneurship Summit 2023 to be held in Indonesia on Sept. 6-9.
He did not specify the plan, but said the DTI will help promote the opportunities to register foreign Islamic banks and local commercial banks to open an Islamic window or a separate Islamic bank.
“But DTI’s priority is to address the availability of halal financing for the MSMEs and startups,” he said.
Halal refers to a dietary law derived from Islamic teachings, meaning “lawful or permitted”, but it is not just for food as it also applies to finance and services.
According to Guiapal, DTI Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual is interested to promote halal entrepreneurship and opportunities in this sector.
For the summit, he said, the DTI has invited local entrepreneurs to participate in the B2B matching sessions. The fashion industry, especially those using textiles produced in Mindanao, was also urged to join the summit.
The IT business process management industry and startups are also encouraged to put up a booth at the summit.
“We hope to host roundtable discussion in the Philippines after the summit to prepare for 2024. This is aligned with the directive of Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual to make the Halal Industry development a priority,” he said.
The goal is to align to the global platform and contribute to the country's target to be a preferred halal investment strategy.
The strategy is to strengthen and capacitate through memorandum of understanding with other halal players in other countries, particularly Indonesia, UAE and Malaysia.
Another strategy is to establish a one stop for Halal companies’ registration in the Philippines. The government through the Department of Agriculture has established a Halal Project Management Office, which oversees the agency’s 10-year halal roadmap of 2017-2027.