Special Philippine trade tour started last week, covering four Gulf states GCC countries host the largest number of overseas Filipinos MANILA: A special trade mission to Gulf Cooperation Council countries is looking to expand the market presence for Philippine halal-certified food, Manila’s envoy to Abu Dhabi said, as delegates started the last leg of the tour in the UAE on Thursday. The Outbound Business Matching Mission by the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry started in Bahrain on Feb. 11 and will also cover Kuwait and Qatar. It will end in Dubai during next week’s Gulfood 2023 — the world’s largest annual food and beverage expo. A total of 26 Philippine exporters of halal-certified food, personal care and cosmetic products joined the mission to the Gulf states to tap into the $3 trillion global industry. “Organizing these business matching sessions is a way for us to open the door to the Philippine private sector,” Philippine Ambassador to the UAE Alfonso A. Ver told Arab News. “While governments open the door, it is the private sector that ultimately needs to enter that door to reap the benefits of this cooperation.” This year’s mission includes exporters from five Philippine regions offering a variety of products to the GCC’s population, including overseas Filipino workers. GCC countries host the largest number of Philippine expats, among whom 800,000 live in Saudi Arabia and 650,000 in the UAE — the country’s two largest trading partners in the Gulf region. “Based on the products of participating exporters in the OBMM and the export potential assessment conducted by the International Trade Center, the mission aims to maximize the Philippines’ additional export potential to the GCC estimated at $100 million,” Ver said. The additional trade volume would mean an increase of over 50 percent, as in 2022, Philippine exports of food products and personal care products to the GCC amounted to $223 million and $11 million, respectively. The trade mission will conclude at Gulfood, where the Philippines will be represented by 18 manufacturers and exporters of fruits and vegetables, seafood, and ethnic and gourmet products, highlighting small and medium enterprises with halal certification under the banner of the country’s food promotion program FOODPhilippines. “The Philippines is continuously strengthening its halal ecosystem to be able to better serve the growing global halal market. The mission aims to contribute to increased understanding of Philippine exporters on the halal market in the GCC,” the Department of Trade and Industry said as it started the GCC tour last week. “Our sustained initiatives to strengthen partnerships in the Middle East is a testament to our desire to work with other countries in attaining food security through cooperation and innovation.”