DAVAO CITY (PIA) -- The Philippine Halal Trade and Tourism Expo, which will be held on May 25-27 at SMX Davao, will feature a wide array of Halal products and tourism-related halal services to the public.

“We will be showcasing Halal certified, Halal potential food products, tourism services and all Halal-related services specially now na very supportive ang Malaysian Ambassador to promote their services not only products but tourism,” said Philippine Halal Trade and Tourism Expo president Marilou Ampuan.

The Malaysian Ambassador to the Philippines Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino earlier had a courtesy call to Vice President Sara Z. Duterte, where Ambassador Malik suggested that the Philippines can explore the potentials of Halal non-food industries such as cosmetics. This opens an avenue for the country to tap into the large Halal market worldwide.

The three-day Halal expo in Davao City will have over 30 booths with eight pavilions with many Halal products from micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

“We have 200 plus MSMEs coming from different regions and municipalities these are under the DTI (Department of Trade and Industry  and other institutional partners,” said  Ampuan, who is also the current Vice Chairperson of the Regional Halal Committee of the National Economic Development Authority- XI (NEDA-XI) and the Vice President for Mindanao-Tourism Congress of the Philippines.

Ampuan said the coming expo is important for the industry in the region as they will harness the existing Halal ecosystem.

"This is a very important event because we are harnessing the Halal ecosystem, kinahanglan naa tay existing and naa tay potential dapat iharness nato para masabtan sa industry players and even the consumers (We should harness the existing and potential products so the industry players can understand the industry and also the consumers),” she stressed. (RGA/PIA Davao City)