MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines on Thursday formally accepted the donation of some 100 metric tons of pressed dates from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Ambassador to the Philippines Abdullah Al-Hassan formally turned over the donation to National Commission on Muslim Filipinos Secretary Mehol Sadain, Foreign Affairs Department Executive Director for Middle East and Africa Nathaniel Imperial and Gwendolyn Pang, Secretary General of the Philippine Red Cross in a simple ceremony at the Saudi Embassy Chancery in Makati City.
According to Al-Hassan, Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud donates tons of processed dates to various countries before the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan when Muslims around the world prefer the date fruit as the first food to take when they break “Iftar†or the fast at sundown.
“It is also the Kingdom’s contribution in the fight against poverty and malnutrition as the date is full of nutrition,†said Al-Hassan.
The Saudi King also donates pressed dates to communities around the world that are hit by calamities, widespread hunger and poverty as part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Islamic humanitarian role.
Last May, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia donated 60 tons of pressed dates to the United Nations World Food Program based in the Philippines for its school feeding program in the conflict-affected areas of southern Mindanao.
Pang said the donation would be distributed to the Filipino Muslim community and to the calamity-hit areas in Davao and in the Compostela Valley. - Mike Frialde