Philippines’ DTI promotes collaboration between Filipino, Qatari enterprises

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in the Philippines is keen on fostering partnerships between Filipino and Qatari companies, which could potentially lead to businesses in the Southeast Asian nation to expand their footprint by setting up operations Qatar, an official has said.

According to Vince Lorenzo Liwanag, the Commercial Attache of the Philippine Trade Investment Centre (PTIC) – Riyadh, Department of Trade and Industry, forging partnerships with companies and businesses in Qatar “is the first step”.

Liwanag also underscored the importance of exploring the business climate of the country, studying potential investment ventures, and understanding the needs of the companies of both countries.

“Once these initial steps have been taken, we hope that partnerships, joint ventures (JVs), or specific structures will advance the potential business for both the Philippines and Qatar,” Liwanag told Gulf Times.

Forging partnerships, access to international markets, and expanding operations in Qatar reflect the objectives of the DTI’s Outbound Business Matching Mission (OBMM), which was held in Qatar last month, in collaboration with the Philippine embassy in Doha and Qatar Chamber.

Liwanag explained that the OBMM is one of the DTI’s key initiatives to connect Filipino businesses with international partners. The Qatar leg of the OBMM was followed by a visit to Amman, Jordan; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; and Dubai in the UAE.

In his speech during the OBMM, Qatar Chamber board member Abdulla bin Mohamed al-Emadi reaffirmed the chamber’s commitment to facilitating partnerships and supporting Qatari businesses in identifying investment prospects in the Philippines.

Al-Emadi underscored the private sector’s significant role in forging economic ties to advance trade partnerships, explore JVs, and secure potential investment opportunities. He said bilateral trade between the Philippines and Qatar stood at QR636mn in 2024, reflecting the growing partnership between the two nations.

He noted that Philippine-Qatar trade and investment have been “expanding rapidly”, citing the visit of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to the Philippines last year, where several memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and agreements were signed in the presence of both nations’ leaderships.

Liwanag emphasised that the OBMM initiative aims to catalyse these types of engagements. “We’re pleased with the outcome of the OBMM and we hope that this could trigger more meaningful interactions and partnerships that can drive progress and innovation between companies in the Philippines and Qatar,” he said.

In 2023, Mekeni Food Corporation president Prudencio “Pruds” Garcia and Alwatania International Holdings CEO Hassan Alkhiyami signed a commercial agreement for the processing, distribution, and marketing of Mekeni products in Qatar.

Mekeni is headquartered in the Philippine province of Pampanga. The company soft-launched its export business in Dubai as early as 2011. Currently, Mekeni’s halal ‘Picnic Hotdog’, ‘Chicken Tocino’, and ‘Chicken Longanisa’ brands are also available in the US, the UAE, Canada, Australia, Bahrain, Brunei, The Netherlands, and New Zealand.

“With Doha as our hub in the Gulf, plans are in the pipeline to expand our export target to more GCC countries, as well as those in Europe and other mainstream markets to give OFWs and Filipinos living permanently abroad a taste of world-class Filipino food products in the hope that we can somehow fill the void of missing home,” Garcia said.