Neda to upgrade Davao industry clusters

by Aurelio Pena

The National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) is set to upgrade the Davao Industry Cluster Capacity Enhancement Project (DICCEP) this year.
The DICCEP is a joint project of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) with full technical support of government agencies, the private sector and the academe.
Neda regional director Maria Lourdes Lim said the Neda will start receiving proposals from industry clusters to upgrade DICCEP to a higher level this year.
Lim said that when DICCEP was implemented as a pilot project in Davao three years ago, it was expected to help boost the economic growth of this southern region
“As a pilot project here, the DICCEP passed our tests with ‘flying colors’ after evaluating all the projects of the industry clusters”, Lim told participants of the final DICCEP assessment meeting composed of industry cluster members and team leaders along with top regional officials of various government agencies.
The various industries included in the Davao clustering project are wood, seaweeds, banana, mango, ICT, mining, tourism and coconut.
“We like to see the close partnership of the private sector, the academe and the government in developing each industry in this region, doing goal setting, strategic planning and project execution together,” Lim said.
The Neda regional director said she was very pleased with the birth of DICCEP and that Davao was chosen as the first region in the country for this industry clustering pilot project.
“This is an effective vehicle to promote growth and development in the Davao region, that’s why we want to see this project expanded to include other stakeholders in the value chain,” Lim said.
According to Lim, she wants to see the big industrial players specially the big exporters, big manufacturers, big processors and other stakeholders actively involved with the industry clusters to help in the growth and development of the Davao region.
“Once they’re part of these industry cluster teams, we expect them to help enhance production capacities, improve skills and boost resources of the smaller industry players,” Lim said.

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