Most Influential Filipinos in the Gulf – AMBASSADOR WILFREDO SANTOS

AMBASSADOR WILFREDO SANTOS

Embassy of the Philippines – Qatar

As the new Philippine Ambassador to the State of Qatar, the objectives of Ambassador Wilfredo Santos are threefold: to strengthen bilateral relations with the host country; to promote economic diplomacy through the enhancement of the image of the Philippines as a leading tourist, business and trade destination in Asia and in the world, and to improve the efficiency in the delivery of the consular services to the public, including the handling of assistance to nationals cases. “Right now, the challenge for me is to bring this large group together under the One-Country Team approach and to be on the same page with what I intend to accomplish during my tour of duty in Qatar,” he says. “So far, I am pleased with their performance and dedication to their work. However, I intend to conduct additional training seminars as well as team-building activities for their continued professional growth.”

During his tenure, he has implemented some reforms in the Embassy that have turned out to be operational gamechangers- rotating the personnel to man our service counters from 12 noon to 1pm and thus allowing them to provide “continuous” services to the public, ordering the placement of truncheons and sign posts indicating the different kind of consular services provided for the guidance of the public, instructing his staff to convert one office room into a receiving room which they named Sentro Rizal, organizing the establishment of Kulinarya Qatar which is a movement composed of Filipino restaurant owners, key community leaders, and Embassy representatives, and reaching the target of 16,000 new registrants for the May 2016 national elections. “While I may be ‘hands on’ when I need to get things done quickly, I also delegate my tasks to allow my personnel, particularly my officers and senior staff, to decide on their own and thus become good leaders themselves,” he says.

His future plans include the strengthening of bilateral relations through the signing of agreements that would enhance the ties, increasing exchanges and high level visits between the two countries in various areas, and bringing more trade and investment to the Philippines.