Coops better than banks: MSMEs

By Vannah S. Ang
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Region 11 Council and the National Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Development Council plans to further improve the efficiency and productivity of MSMEs in the region through special assistance.
According to Ma. Belenda Q. Ambi, DTI 11 officer-in-charge, they have been providing various types of assistance for MSMEs, including financial assistance, product development, trainings and seminars, and the establishment of shared service facilities (SSFs).
As of June, DTI 11 has assisted a total of 2,888 MSMEs in the region where 1,379 are new and 1,509 are existing enterprises.
Marie Anne J. How, DTI 11 Trade and MSME Development division, said that one of the many interventions they have done for the MSMEs is the SME Roving Academy (SMERA) training program.
“In the program, potential MSMEs are given the opportunity to develop their skills entrepreneurially, and at the same time, enhance their management skills. It’s actually a venue for them to learn more about becoming a succesful MSME,” she said.
How said that DTI 11 will continue to cater to more MSMEs through special assistance as they aim to improve the economy.
Mary Ann M. Montemayor, National MSME Development Council vice chair and private sector representative, said that their overarching mission is to produce more MSMEs and to make them graduate into bigger enterprises.
“MSMEs contribute greatly to job generation, so the goal is to really focus on this sector so 2 million jobs could be generated with a 40 percent contribution to gross value added (GVA) by 2016,” she said.
Montemayor also said that MSMEs need to improve to be capable of competing in national and international markets.
“MSMEs need to improve to be at par with other players in the global market, particurly in the wake of the 2015 Asean Economic Community,” she said.
As DTI 11 and the National MSME Development Council targets to further assist MSMEs in the region, they will hold the National MSME Summit on August 20 to 21 at the SMX Convention Center.
“The summit, with the theme Philippine MSMEs: Beating Challenges, Accelerating Innovation, will surely benefit all MSMEs in the region,” How said.
The summit is comprised of various presentations, including the state of the Philippine MSMEs and the updated MSME development plan for 2016, priming industry clusters for the ASEAN Economic Community, innovating local government unit (LGU) support to MSMEs, finance operation and better financial management, and more.

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