Sentro Rizal’s Expansion Will Boost Cultural Exchange, Cooperation with Other Countries – Legarda

Senator Loren Legarda commended the continued expansion of Sentro Rizal, saying that it is a great opportunity to promote cultural exchange among different countries, allowing the rest of the world to further understand and appreciate Filipino culture, arts and language.

Sentro Rizal (SR) is the international cultural arm of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA). It was recognized by virtue of Section 42 of Republic Act 10066 known as the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009, which specifies a center “whose main purpose is the promotion of Philippine arts, culture and language throughout the world.”

The Senator explained that Sentro Rizal is a repository of all kinds of material relating to the promotion of Philippine history, arts, culture, language and tourism.  One of its main goals is to provide a place where children of overseas Filipino workers can learn about their heritage through cultural programs and activities.

From September this year, the Sentro Rizal has expanded with the inauguration of several new centers. SR Doha, in Qatar, was opened last September 20. SR in Cairo, the first ever SR to be established in the African region, was inaugurated last September 25. SR Agana, the latest addition to the centers, was inaugurated in Guam last October 11. To date, there are 21 Sentro Rizals established across the globe.

The NCCA continues to reach out to the international community and the Filipino community abroad, with the support of the Office of Senator Legarda, for the remaining days of 2016 as it simultaneously inaugurated SR in Brunei and Milan on November 28, as well as SR in Rome on November 29.

“Sentro Rizal will take root where there are Filipinos who wish to keep the connection with their motherland alive. It aims to foster international exchange, understanding and friendship between Filipinos and foreign nationals with whom we share deep historic and cultural bonds,” Legarda stressed.

Envisioned as the Philippine counterpart of France’s Alliance Française, Spain’s Instituto Cervantes, and Germany’s Goethe-Institut, Sentro Rizal is expected to offer Filipino language courses for children and adults, as well as exhibits, small concerts, poetry reading, Philippine cuisine lessons, and other cultural activities.