Iloilo Dinagyang shines at the UN Meet in Nepal
The Iloilo Dinagyang Festival involvement in promoting the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) was reported as the Philippines' best practice in an international workshop attended by about sixty representatives from a dozen countries held in Kathmandu, Nepal last 21-23 March 2007.
In a conference jointly organized by CITYNET, UN Habitat and the Municipal Association of Nepal (MuAN), a training on the use of social artistry as a strategy for bringing the MDG to the grassroots was introduced and was followed by a workshop where countries reported their achievements on the MDG.
The Philippine report on the partnership between Dinagyang and the City Government of Iloilo was presented by City Tourism Officer Ben Jimena to the delegates of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Lao, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, USA, Vietnam and the Philippines. The conference dubbed as a Leadership Training and Workshop on the Localization of the MDG in Asian Cities through Innovative Leadership and Community Empowerment was hosted by MuAN at the Hyatt Regency Kathmandu.
Jimena shared with the participants how a non-government organization (NGO) like the Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation, Inc. (IDFI), works with government on pushing for development through various projects such as the operation of the festival and using it not only as a unifying element for the community but also as a focusing event to get the attention of the public to important issues such as the localization of the MDGs. The report was presented Friday, 23 March 2007, in a workshop that summarized what the training has brought about and what processes have been done by some of the participating countries.
Earlier during the training the footage of the 2007 Iloilo Dinagyang Festival was shown to the delegates who were enthralled by the performances of the tribes. The foreigners were amazed by the dancers whose faces were painted black and wearing costumes of varied colors and textures.
The training was facilitated by Dr. Jean Houston and Peggy Rubins who introduced the participants to the art and science behind social artistry. They addressed the fact that the new kind of leaders from many countries were gathered to work together, and how this can serve as model for doing deep work collectively, drawing upon the genius of many cultures to make a better world.
The conference has likewise opened new opportunities for Iloilo City to cook up sisterhood agreements with two cities -- the Ocean City of Kaohsiung in Taiwan and the Flower City of Tomohon, Indonesia. Dr. Ming Hong Ham, city health officer of Kaohsiung showed interest in a tie up between their dragonboat festival and the Iloilo Paraw Regatta. Tomohon Mayor Jefferson Soleiman Rumajar was more interested in sharing notes on festival administration with the Dinagyang festival. Tomohon will have its flower festival in July 2008, which according to its mayor, will be as grand as the Parade of Roses in Pasadena.
Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas has immediately given instruction for the City Tourism Office to expedite papers required for the sisterhood pact. If this partnership with Kaohsiung and Tomohon materialize, Iloilo City would already have eight sister cities.