Iloilo’s Dinagyang Festival received two awards from the International Festivals and Events Association (IFEA) Asia during the 2025 Global Festival Summit in Gyeongju, Republic of Korea on March 21.
The Dinagyang Festival was named Best Overall Entertainment Program for the Pinnacle Awards Asia 2025 and Asia Dynamic Festival (Dancing Festival) of 2025 for the Asia Festival Awards.
“We are the only contingent from the Philippines that received the awards. I’m not sure if they invited others,” Iloilo Festival Foundation, Inc. (IFFI) executive director Joyce Clavecillas said in an interview on Tuesday, March 25.
Clavecillas said the foundation submitted a portfolio of the festival upon the invitation of the IFEA – a non-profit organization specializing in festivals and events – and received feedback about Dinagyang winning the two awards in early March.
Dinagyang Festival Director and Artistic Director Eric Divinagracia and IFFI Director for Culture and Arts Initiatives Elvert Bañares received the award at the Gyeongju Hwabaek International Convention Center as part of the events for the 2025 Global Festival Summit on March 19-21.
Clavecillas said the event provided a venue for festivals to meet, benchmark, and market the festivals from other countries all over Asia.
“It’s like a workshop conference, so at least Dinagyang was able to benchmark the things that we need to improve or leverage. Not only can we promote Iloilo, but we also learn from other nations. For sure, this will also attract them, and consider Iloilo for their future vacations. This is an added mileage for Iloilo City and Dinagyang Festival,” she said.
Clavecillas said they look forward to the gathering of festivals from other continents next year, another opportunity for Dinagyang to get promoted in other continents.Perla Lena/PNA
