DOHA, Qatar –The Philippines and Qatar have signed trade agreements worth $200 million during the final leg of President Rodrigo Duterte’s Gulf tour, Manila’s trade and industry secretary told reporters in Doha Sunday.
Ramon Lopez said 6,000 jobs would be created in the Philippines as a result of the 13 agreements signed between private companies at the weekend, which covered areas such as health, defense and tourism.
“The private firms in Qatar have shown great interest in various projects (in the) Philippines,” Lopez told the Qatar Tribune newspaper.
“There are many more opportunities where they can invest.”
His comments came as Duterte prepared to meet senior government officials in Doha on Sunday, and less than 24 hours after the former mayor addressed an adoring crowd of almost 7,000 supporters in Qatar.
Duterte thrills Filipino audience
Duterte thrilled a sell-out audience by reiterating his uncompromising policy pledges on drugs — which has gained him popularity at home — and warned those in the drug trade not to test him.
During an hour-long speech, Duterte spoke also about his pledges on clamping down on corruption and sang a duet with a local Filipino singer, Hanna Uddin.
The Filipino community in Qatar enthusiastically welcomed Philippine President Duterte during his official state visit to the country during the weekend.
During his visit, President Duterte met the large Filipino community in Qatar in a gathering held at the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail City in the outskirts of the capital city Doha. The President met with some 6,000 OFWs in the country on April 15, according to the Presidential Communications Operations Office.
Philippine Ambassador to Qatar Alan L. Tibayan disclosed that there are more than 200,000 Filipino expatriates in Qatar, making them the 4th largest foreign community in the country.
In a press conference, Ambassador Tibayan disclosed that the presidential state visit is expected to enhance ties between the Philippines and Qatar. He was quoted as saying “President Duterte is expected to further boost employment opportunities for Filipinos – workers and professionals – who are here to seek greener pastures.”
President Duterte and his delegation of government officials met the emir of Qatar Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani on Sunday April 16 and signed a series of agreements in the fields of health, culture, technical, vocational, education and training, and possibly the granting of waiver for diplomatic passport holders.
Filipinos in Qatar expressed their jubilation during the President Duterte’s visit to the country.
“It is such a big honor to meet our effective, popular, and serious President to this part of the world”, said Romeo Villegas, Founding Chairman of Pinoy Heart Radio, one of the pioneer OFW-focused radio stations in the region.
The Philippine President was received upon arrival at the Hamad International Airport in Doha by HE the Minister of Energy and Industry Dr. Mohamed bin Saleh al-Sada, Qatar’s ambassador to the Philippines Ali bin Ibrahim al-Malki on Friday April 14.
Some 240,000 Filipinos live in Qatar, and a large majority voted for the president in last year’s election.
It is interesting to note that President Duterte has been well received by the Filipino diaspora in Qatar. During the 2016 Philippine general elections the former mayor from Davao City, a major city in the south of the Philippines, received some 80 percent of votes out of 15,000 who cast their votes in the country.
Despite criticism of the way some Filipino workers are treated in the Gulf, Duterte said earlier on his visit that expats managed to send home more than $7 billion (6.6 billion euros) in remittances in 2016.
The President returned home on Sunday after also visiting Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. (Agence France Presse, with a report from Duane Dizon, Eagle News Service correspondent in Qatar)
