UNESCO names Iloilo the first Creative City of Gastronomy in the Philippines

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) just named Iloilo City as the first Philippine city to join its Creative Cities Network (UCCN) in the field of gastronomy.

Iloilo is among the 55 new cities that joined the UCCN, which were "were acknowledged for their strong commitment to harnessing culture and creativity as part of their development strategies, and displaying innovative practices in human-centred urban planning."

The addition now puts the Network at 350 cities-strong, and in more than one hundred countries that represent seven creative fields, including Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts and Music.

UNESCO made the announcement just in time for the World Cities Day on Tuesday, with Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO Director-General saying "The cities in our Creative Cities Network are leading the way when it comes to enhancing access to culture and galvanizing the power of creativity for urban resilience and development."

On Facebook, Iloilo mayor Jerry Treñas expressed his joy for the City of Love’s UNESCO recognition and congratulated his constituents.

“I am very happy for the recent wins of the city — Most Business-Friendly Highly Urbanized City outside NCR from the PCCI National, and the UNESCO Creative City for Gastronomy — the only city in the Philippines,” the mayor said in a post.

“These awards are results of teamwork of our hardworking city officials and employees and consultants,” he added. 

Along with Iloilo, UNESCO also recognized Cambodia’s Battambang, China’s Chaozhou, Switzerland’s Fribourg, South Korea’s Gangneung, Greece’s Herakleion, and Cameroon’s Nkongsamba in the field of gastronomy.

Congratulations, Iloilo City! Namit gid!

— Hermes Joy Tunac/LA, GMA Integrated News