Dinagyang, Kalibo Ati-Atihan foundation execs discuss festival’s best practices
BY BOY RYAN B. ZABAL

Tourism regional director Edwin Trompeta (center) with the Kalibo Sto. Nino Ati-Atihan Foundation, Inc. (Kasafi) at the DOT-6 office in Iloilo City. Joining him are Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation, Inc. (IDFI) president Ramon Cua Locsin (third from left) and Marissa Segovia of IDFI (second from right) / PHOTO BY RAMEL BUNCALAN/Aklan Photographic Society

KALIBO, Aklan - With six months to go until the January Ati festivals, organizers from the Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation, Inc. (IDFI) and the Kalibo Sto. Nino Ati-Atihan Foundation, Inc. (Kasafi) met to exchange ideas and best practices at the regional office of the Department of Tourism (DoT) in Iloilo City yesterday.

IDFI and Kasafi officers gathered for a three-hour ‘free-wheeling’ discussion of the organization structure, innovations, financing and marketing, management and operations of their festivals.

Kasafi chaired by Albert Menez highly appreciated the presence of IDFI president and Philippine Red Cross Governor Ramon Cua Locsin and DoT regional director Edwin Trompeta for sharing the best practices of the Iloilo Dinagyang festival to the Kasafi members.

Also present were festival secretariat head and Iloilo City tourism and development officer Benito Jimena and IDFI finance committee chairman Marissa Segovia, also co-chairman of the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Western Visayas.

Locsin cited the aggressive marketing promotion and the solid triumvirate of the foundation, city and church officials behind the success of the annual Dinagyang festival every January.
Jimena, for his part, discussed key points on the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed by IDFI and Iloilo City.

GEARING UP

Menez said Kasafi is gearing up for the next year’s Kalibo Ati-Atihan festival to be held from January 9 to 15.

Kasafi has earned wide praises and recognition for establishing transparency and initiatives after just one year of managing the festival.

This early, Menez stressed that the foundation is reorganizing the committees for better operations of Kasafi and is seeking for more volunteers for the 2012 Kalibo Ati-Atihan. In fact, he said, the Kasafi recently started meeting the stakeholders to solicit ideas or ways to improve the forthcoming Ati-Atihan event in honor of Senor Sto. Nino.

PPP initiative

Trompeta hailed the public-private partnership (PPP) of the city government and the IDFI in attracting more investors and tourists to Iloilo City.

“Tourism will not succeed without the public sector support. The strong community cooperation of the Dinagyang foundation and the local government is the best example of PPP in the region,” he added.

Trompeta said the IDFI has worked closely with Iloilo City officials to bring the Dinagyang performers in Washington, D.C. and New York last month in celebration of the Philippine Independence Day.