BY RAYNALD C RIVERA
DOHA: The Philippine embassy is keen to boost Philippine tourism with the launch of Kulinarya Qatar, a first-of-its-kind initiative which utilises Filipino cuisine as a vehicle to promote the country as a leading culinary, tourist and business destination.
“I have been in the diplomatic service for more than two decades and I’ve always believed that food plays a major role in promoting a country’s national identity and culture,” said Ambassador Wilfredo C Santos at the formal launch of Kulinarya Qatar on Thursday at InterContinental Doha The City.
He stressed that promoting Filipino cuisine is one of his major projects during his term and that Kulinarya Qatar is “a brand which will celebrates Filipino culture and identity”.
“While millions of Filipinos live and work in countries around the world, including Qatar which is home to 200,000 of our countrymen, Filipino cuisine has yet to make its mark overseas. Kulinarya Qatar aims to change that,” he said.
For the project the embassy is partnering with Filipino community to organise activities to encourage greater appreciation of Filipino cuisine to boost the Philippines’ standing among the world’s best cuisines.
He called the project a “movement” to promote rich Filipino cooking traditions and entice more tourists to visit the Philippines which he says “is an integral part of the embassy’s economic diplomacy programme and supports the ‘Visit the Philippines 2015’ programme of the Department of Tourism”.
A committee of Filipinos involved in key sectors was formed to plan out events and activities to be held year round. Its first event was Filipino Festival from July 17 to 19 which saw thousands of Filipinos, Qataris and expatriates celebrating Eid Al Fitr while enjoying Filipino food.
Filipino Community Family Day will be held from September 23 to 26 at Qatar Sports Club. Coinciding with Eid Al Adha holidays, the event is expected to draw more than 15,000 people because of the bigger venue.
The committee has lined up activities and events running until next year. From October to the end of next year, Filipino night buffets will be held in partnership with hotels in Doha. Filipino fare will also be promoted in the Qatari market on a regular basis.
Apart from providing gastronomic journey to the people of Qatar, cooking training and competitions targeting different segments of the community will also be organised next year.
Among other highlights of the project are developing Kulinarya magazine to disseminate information on the programme and a campaign to develop new Filipino dishes integrating Arabic flavour to establish Filipino cuisine in the Arab mainstream.
Santos expressed optimism that the project will be sustainable with activities that people will anticipate every year and become global in reach as a brand.
The Peninsula
