RIBBON CUTTING: Philippine Ambassador Wilfredo Santos, centre, leads the opening of the Filipino Community Family Day yesterday together with ambassadors Piroon Laismit of Thailand, Shingo Tsuda of Japan, Nordin Ahmad of Brunei, and UFOQ chairman Ed Anami.

By Peter Alagos

The Philippine embassy’s recently-launched “Kulinarya Qatar Programme” will enhance the exposure of Qatar-based Filipino restauranteurs, an official of the United Filipino Organisations in Qatar said.
Speaking to Gulf Times yesterday, UFOQ vice chairman Ressie Fos said the culinary programme, launched by Ambassador Wilfredo Santos last month to promote Philippine cuisine and culture, will also foster unity and harmony among Filipinos working in the food industry here.
“The Kulinarya Qatar Programme will benefit many Filipino restauranteurs in Qatar, and serves as a big break for them as it encourages them to upgrade the quality of the cuisine they serve to customers.
“And instead of competition, the embassy’s programme promotes unity and harmony among Filipino entrepreneurs, who have made a name for themselves in the restaurant business in Qatar,” Fos explained.
Fos said he believes the programme will create “significant and positive” impact among Filipinos who are in Qatar’s food business.
“It is important to note that Kulinarya Qatar widens the scope in terms of the endorsement of Filipino food here. In the absence of such a programme, our Filipino restauranteurs in Qatar are only left to wait and rely on walk-ins and existing customers,” Fos stressed.
As part of the Eid al-Adha celebrations, the Philippine embassy staged the inaugural Filipino Community Family Day yesterday under the auspices of the Kulinarya Qatar Programme.
The event, which runs from 9am until Saturday at the Intercontinental Hotel Doha The City, features Filipino food restaurants and different international food sellers, Filipino and local products on sale, daily cultural shows, kids’ activities, mascots and games, ice cream eating contest, and other activities.
Speaking to reporters during the event, Ambassador Wilfredo Santos said: “Kulinarya Qatar is a movement and a brand that involves the participation of Filipino restaurant owners in Doha. This Filipino community family day is a follow-up event to the successful first Filipino Food Festival that we held last July in celebration of Eid al-Fitr.
“We are making progress in the promotion of our cuisine to be part of the Arab mainstream. We have to start somewhere and holding events such as the community family day is one of our efforts to increase appreciation and awareness of the Philippines as a tourist, business, and trade destination.”
According to Santos, there are around 22 Filipino food business establishments in Qatar.
“Through Kulinarya Qatar activities, we are able to bring together Filipino entrepreneurs under one roof to maximise their potentials in the market and as a means of supporting their businesses.
“Perhaps, we are the only embassy in the GCC with this kind of programme that promotes economic diplomacy through cuisine. I hope to encourage other ambassadors in the region to launch similar initiative,” Santos said.