10 November 2021, Calgary – During his recent visit to Edmonton, Alberta, Consul General Zaldy Patron hosted a “Kapihan with the Consul General” on 1 November 2021.
Thirty-six (36) leaders of the Filipino community in Edmonton, representing at least 12 organizations, attended the event that was held at the Filipino restaurant Cebuchon.
During the Kapihan, Consul General Patron briefed the community leaders about the accomplishments of the Philippine Consulate General (PCG) in Calgary in 2021 and its plans and programs for 2022.
Consul General Patron shared with the community leaders the improvements that the PCG has instituted to enhance its delivery of consular services. These include the PCG’s transfer to a bigger and more spacious office in May 2021; the use of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ passport online appointment system that allows a quicker processing of passport application; the availability of more passport appointment slots daily; and the conduct of seven consular outreach missions this year.
He also informed them about the completion of the Dr. José Rizal Monument in Nose Creek Regional Park in the City of Airdrie, the first Rizal monument in Alberta. The PCG initiated and led the implementation of the historic project, which is also the PCG’s biggest cultural diplomacy project to date.
Likewise, Consul General Patron highlighted the PCG’s promotion this year of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ Fiesta Filipinas online festivals in partnership with selected Filipino media programs in Alberta and Saskatchewan, and the PCG’s partnership with the Calgary-based Binhi ng Lahi for the Sining Filipinas online lecture series.
Consul General Patron discussed the PCG’s education cooperation program that successfully linked the University of Alberta with the Philippine Department of Science and Technology and the University of Saskatchewan with the Philippine Commission on Higher Education.
He also explained the PCG’s advocacy for the easier recognition of credentials of Filipino nurses in Alberta and Saskatchewan, as part of the joint program of the Philippine Embassy in Ottawa and the Philippine Consulates General in Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver. In June 2021, the PCG also joined the Philippine Foreign Service Posts in Canada in their “Proudly Philippines, Proudly Filipino” social media campaign.
This year, the PCG also started to offer a briefing for Filipinos who are planning to take the Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP).
For 2022, the PCG plans to further improve its delivery of consular services and implement several projects under its cultural diplomacy and economic diplomacy programs.