DTI Chief and SB Corp Chairman Convenes SB Corp Board of Directors

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary and Small Business Corporation (SB Corp) Chairman Ramon Lopez on September 13, 2019 convened the Corporation’s Directors and Officers to discuss SB Corp’s loan programs for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), especially the administration’s landmark program Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3). The P3 program has extended financing assistance to over 96,000 micro entrepreneurs as the government's flagship program that aims to topple loan sharks has widened its reach throughout the country since its inception in 2017. As of September 16, 2019, the SB Corp has released a total of P3.3 billion worth of loans to micro entrepreneurs through its 378 credit delivery partners that has reached rural and far-flung areas in the country. Under the P3 Program, a micro enterprise can borrow between P5,000 up to P200,000 depending on its business need and repayment capacity with no collateral requirement.  Interest rate and service fees, all in, do not exceed 2.5% monthly. The P3 Program serves as an alternative to the P30 billion “5-6” money lending industry that charges 20% nominal interest rate to MSMEs. Led by SB Corp Chairman and Trade Secretary Lopez (center, seated), in photo are (seated from L-R) SB Corp Director Merly Cruz, SB Corp President and CEO Ma. Luna Cacanando, DTI Undersecretary for Regional Operations Blesila Lantayona, and Department of Finance Representative Reina Cuarez. (Second row) Directors Joe Jay Doctora, Santiago Lim, Benel Lagua, Ferdinand Tolentino, and Manuel Bendigo.

DTI Eyes Stronger Collaboration with Cooperatives to Boost Programs for MSME Development

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MANDALUYONG – Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez underscored the vital role of cooperatives in widening the reach of government programs for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), especially at the countryside.

“Cooperatives make a significant economic difference in the lives of its members while contributing to their overall well-being and their communities. They have been our ally in empowering our MSMEs, allowing DTI programs to be accessible in their respective areas such as our microfinance loans and shared service facilities,” said Sec. Lopez.

According to the trade chief, DTI and the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) shall continue to harmonize policies as well as coordinate programs and activities that will help the cooperatives in strengthening and maximizing its role in empowering those at the grassroots level and sharing the prosperity to all Filipinos nationwide.

During a policy dialogue organized by the CDA, USAID, and United States Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC) on 30 July 2019, Sec. Lopez shared DTI programs where cooperatives play an important role.

Cooperatives partner with DTI’s Small Business (SB) Corporation and become credit delivery partners for the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) microfinance loan program of the government. Members of cooperatives likewise get access of this low interest loan to set up their own businesses.

DTI also award shared service facilities (SSF) to cooperatives and associations to improve MSME competitiveness by providing them with machinery, equipment, tools, systems, skills and knowledge under a shared system.

DTI also eyes cooperatives to become a partner in its Negosyo Serbisyo sa Barangay, where MSME development programs are extended to the barangay and community levels.

DTI has helped many MSMEs and cooperatives through its programs, like when the City of Gapan Footwear Multi-purpose Cooperative in Nueva Ecija helped Rolando Pascual establish his own brand, the Bagong Likha Footwear, through the SSF awarded by DTI. Likewise, the SSF awarded to Santo Niño de Parish Multi-purpose Cooperative in Leyte allowed the local community to create their pandan and bariw products. Through the machineries and the mentoring as well as training programs in product development and marketing provided by DTI, the products are now being exported to the United States and Indonesia.

Residents of Marawi who were affected by the siege were also awarded with SSFs through various cooperatives such as Maranao Collectibles Services Cooperative that received langkit weaving equipment and Lower Bangon Marawi Consumer Cooperative that received palapa production machineries. The equipment aims to bring back the vibrant trading in Marawi and uplift the lives of many Maranaos.

Cebu People’s Multi-purpose Cooperative in Cebu City is one of SB Corporation’s credit delivery partners for the P3 program. The cooperative has assisted 1,076 MSMEs in their city, including market and carenderia vendors.

Meanwhile, key findings in the study undertaken by OCDC revealed that:

1. Coop members reported enjoying a better economic position, and are more likely not to be poor and more likely to be lower middle or better.

2. Coop members say their cooperatives are the reason why they have a better economic position. Members also report a sense of financial security and overall well-being. In addition, 74% of non-members state that cooperative activity positively affects the overall economic development of the community.

“Stronger collaboration between government, the cooperatives, and the private sector will boost the programs for our MSMEs. This will allow is to spread the delivery of basic services to the grassroots level even as we implement our poverty alleviation and inclusive growth programs,” Sec. Lopez concluded.

Innovative Startup Act to provide Incentives for Startups and Enablers

MAKATI – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is one of the lead agencies in implementing the recently signed Republic Act 11337 or the Innovative Startup Act. The new law will help startups and startup enablers by providing incentives like travel grants, access to a Startup Venture Fund, and assistance in getting visas and business permits.

“The Innovative Startup Act is part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s vision of a comfortable life for all Filipinos. DTI commits to implement the law to foster an environment conducive to smarter entrepreneurs,” said Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.

Aside from the DTI, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) are the host agencies to implement the Philippine Startup Development Program, composed of programs, benefits and incentives for the startup community.

"There is so much entrepreneurial potential, talent, motivation, and optimism of our young population. With the current strong momentum for collaboration between and among government, academe, and industry and the comprehensive fiscal and non-fiscal support of RA 11337, we will be able to grow and develop our startup ecosystem and catch up with our neighbors especially in creating billion-dollar startups,” said DTI Undersecretary for Competitiveness and Innovation Rafaelita Aldaba.

To avail of these incentives, startups and startup enablers have to pass an application and selection process to be determined in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). The first meeting to craft the IRR was held on 22 July at the University of the Philippines Diliman. Present at the meeting were  DTI Undersecretary Rafaelita Aldaba, DOST Undersecretary Rowena Guevara and DICT Dir. Emmy Lou Delfin, as well as other officials and representatives from each agency.

Business registration assistance

Selected startups and enablers will get subsidies for business registration fees. The host agencies will also endorse their applications to be prioritized or expedited. The three agencies will also provide subsidies for use of office spaces, facilities, equipment, services, and repurposed government spaces.

Travel assistance, startup visas

For startups and enablers participating in local and international events, DTI, DOST, and DICT can help expedite travel documents and provide subsidies for airfare, baggage, per diem allowance, and other travel expenses.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) will create startup visas for owners, employees, and investors valid for five years and renewed with three-year validity. Startup visa holders will be exempted from getting an Alien Employment Permit issued by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)

Meanwhile, Filipino startup executives will be eligible to apply for an APEC Business Travel Card which streamlines the entry process for APEC-member countries for short business trips.

Venture assistance

The host agencies will set up a startup grant fund to provide grants-in-aid for research and development, training, and expansion plans. DTI and the National Development Company (NDC) will also create a Startup Venture Fund to invest in startups based in the Philippines.

Startup Philippines website, education programs

The DICT will launch a Startup Philippines website, where beneficiaries can inquire about the progress of all incentives awarded under the law. The website will also contain a database of startups and enablers as well as relevant statistics, reports, and studies.

Under the new law, the Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) are also directed to integrate entrepreneurship in their curricula and provide grants and incentives to academic institutions.

SEC. LOPEZ SEEKS MORE PARTNERS IN DELIVERING MICROFINANCE LOANS TO MSMES

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez (8th from L) called on the private sector to partner with the government in ensuring micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across the country will have easy access to the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3), the low-cost, no-collateral microfinance loan of the government initiated by President Rodrigo Duterte. During the P3 Credit Delivery Partner Forum on 25 July 2019, the trade chief encouraged more partnerships with rural banks and cooperatives in spreading the reach of the P3 program, which has changed the lives of many aspiring and thriving entrepreneurs in the country and assisted more than 89,000 MSMEs. Meanwhile, Senator Aquilino Pimentel III (7th from L) expressed his support for the program and recognized the need for its longevity. He committed to work on institutionalizing the P3 program and to be a partner of DTI in driving entrepreneurship and making microfinance loans accessible to Filipinos, especially those at the countryside. In the photo are SB Corporation President Luna Cacanando (5th from L), DTI Undersecretary Zenaida Maglaya (6th from R), and credit delivery partners from FICO Bank, St. Francis Multi-purpose Cooperative, Bank of Florida, GM Bank of Luzon, The New Rural Bank of San Leonardo, MVSM Rural Bank, Yakap at Halik Multi-purpose Cooperative, Cebu People’s Cooperative, Silangan Multi-purpose Cooperative, and Cantilan Bank, Inc.

SB Corp to introduce 10 Credit Delivery Partners for P3 program

The Small Business Corporation will introduce 10 Credit Delivery Partners (CDPs) from Luzon to Mindanao to deliver fast and efficiently the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) program to micro entrepreneurs.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez said the 10 CDPs will make the delivery of the P3 program faster to micro entrepreneurs in rural areas to help spur economic activity in the countryside and provide employment to Filipinos.

“President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration always seeks for ways to provide service and assistance to our micro entrepreneurs in the easiest and most accessible way as possible, especially to those from the countryside,” said Sec. Lopez.

SB Corp., the micro financing arm of the Department of Trade and Industry, through the P3 program has extended financing assistance to over 89,000 micro entrepreneurs as the government's flagship program that aims to topple loan sharks has widen its reach throughout the country since its inception in 2017.

As of July 23, 2019, the SB Corp has released a total of P2.9 billion worth of loans to micro entrepreneurs through its 353 credit delivery partners that has reached rural and far-flung areas in the country.

SB Corp President and CEO Ma. Luna Cacanando welcomed the inclusion of the 10 Credit Delivery Partners, which she acknowledged would help in distributing the much-needed funds by micro entrepreneurs.

The Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) program is a P1 billion loan financing program intended to give micro enterprises better access to finance, providing them an alternative to the informal or 5-6 scheme of lending.

Among the CDPs that will be introduced are rural banks and cooperatives: FICO Bank from Cauayan City, Isabela; GM Bank of Luzon from Cabanatuan City, Isabela; The New Rural Bank of San Leonardo from San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija; Bank of Florida from San Fernando, Pampanga; St. Francis Multi-purpose Cooperative from Malolos, Bulacan; MVSM Rural Bank from Marikina City; Cebu People’s Cooperative from Cebu City; Silangan Multi-purpose Cooperative from Davao City; Cantilan Bank from Surigao del Sur; and Yakap at Halik Multi-purpose Cooperative from Quezon Province.

Secretary Lopez reiterated that with the loan program, micro enterprises may find relief from overly expensive borrowings and afford cost-efficient and affordable form of loan that will help expand their businesses.

Meanwhile, the P3 program also has reached out to Maranao entrepreneurs through the Bangon Marawi initiative and has released P7.5 million to 457 Maranao borrowers. Likewise, soldiers and policemen who were either wounded or killed in action during the Marawi siege were also provided assistance with a total of P27.71 million released to 335 soldiers and policemen, and their families.

Under the P3 Program, a micro enterprise can borrow between P5,000 up to P200,000 depending on its business need and repayment capacity with no collateral requirement.  Interest rate and service fees, all in, do not exceed 2.5% monthly.

The P3 Program serves as an alternative to the P30 billion “5-6” money lending industry that charges 20% nominal interest rate to MSMEs.

NDC CELEBRATES ITS CENTENNIAL YEAR

The National Development Company (NDC) had a modest celebration of its centennial year which was held at the PICC with its Chairman, DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez, as the guest of honor.

The occasion was a gathering of luminaries with the presence of former NDC Chairpersons, Ambassador Lilia Bautista, Jesli Lapuz and Adrian Cristobal. Likewise, present were former General Managers, Arthur Aguilar, Jose Mari Trenas, Samie Lim and Ofelia Bulaong together with partners from the government and the private sector.

The affair was an opportunity for NDC to showcase its evolution from 1919 to 2019, from its first subsidiary, the Cebu Portland Cement Company incorporated in 1921 to its most recent investment in Rizal Mini Hydro Power Project.

The DTI Secretary cited NDC’s rich history and commended the company for its contribution to the current economic progress that the country is experiencing now.

Through its 100 years of existence, NDC took the role of a catalyst in the country’s economic development, undertaking diverse projects, from inception, to nurturing, to privatization. These include industrial projects in the form of the National Steel Corporation, Philippine Phosphate Fertilizer Corporation, Philippine Associated Smelting and Refining Corporation, agricultural plantations through the NDC-Guthrie Plantations, Inc. and NDC-Guthrie Estates, Inc., transport with the Philippine Airlines, National Shipping Corporation and ocean-going vessels.

Likewise, NDC was the Philippine corporate representative in the Asean Joint Venture Projects in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

After focusing on privatization during the Aquino administration, NDC reverted on its cycle of investments with the likes of the very successful First Cavite Industrial Estate, Inc., Manila Exposition Complex, Inc., Science Park of the Philippines, Inc., San Carlos Bio-ethanol, Inc., Philippine Mining Development Corporation, Philippine Pharma Procurement, Inc., NDC Philippine Infrastructure Corporation, Alabang-Sto. Tomas Development, Inc.

As NDC journeys through its bicentennial year, its developmental perspective is geared towards high impact projects where it would act as an enabler to new technology-incubation, global competitiveness endeavors, renewable energy generation, addressing supply chain gaps, micro, small and medium enterprises and urban/rural development, providing support to local economies.

Its projects in the pipeline include the Multi-purpose Gamma Irradiation Facility, the expansion of the World Trade Center Metro Manila, the Davao Food Complex in Toril, Davao, the NDC Industrial Estate in Dasmarinas, Cavite, the solar hybrid system project initially targeted to be located in Palawan and the venture fund for start-ups.

NDC is, likewise, working in parallel with and is supportive of the investment priority plans of the Department of Trade and Industry, specifically in the Leyte Ecological Industrial Zone.

The company has and will continue to champion socio-economic programs through projects in greenfield areas generating employment and raising income towards the upliftment of the dignity of the Filipinos.

Realizing the need for a definitive identity and to embrace a sense of corporate branding, the celebration was capped with the release of the new NDC Logo and the NDC Corporate Hymn.

SB Corp., UP Los Baños ink pact opening MSME Finance Institute

Body The Small Business Corporation (SB Corp) has forged a partnership with the University of the Philippines – Los Baños (UPLB) to help boost an inclusive and integrated entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem for Filipino entrepreneurs through the MSME Finance Institute at the State University’s campus in Los Baños, Laguna.

The SB Corp.–UPLB partnership will provide entrepreneurs continuous access to technology, knowledge and information, research and development network, and infrastructure such as the Fabrication Laboratories and Shared Service Facility (SSF). Throughout different phases of the enterprise, appropriate funding will also be made available in the form of loans or equity financing.

“With the state university’s ability to provide a wide array of services such as infrastructure, expertise, knowledge and technology to startup and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the partnership would produce very good results,” SB Corp. President and CEO Ma. Luna Cacanando said.

Cacanando added that financing access and mechanism will bring the products of research and development closer to the market and facilitate technology commercialization through business startup models.

The SB Corp.-UPLB partnership is anchored on the i3s Strategy or Inclusive, Innovation and Industrial Strategy, which aims to build a strong government-academe-industry collaboration that includes innovation and entrepreneurship and human resource development.

Under the agreement, SB Corp will provide MSMEs with risk-based lending technology, risk-based financing and mindset, financial education, access to industry linkages through DTI’s network, equity financing facility, low-cost lending through the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) Program, access to markets and industry, among others.

On the other hand, the UPLB through the Center for Technology Transfer and Entrepreneurship (CTTE) and Department of Agribusiness Management and Entrepreneurship (DAME) will provide startups and MSMEs technical and entrepreneurship trainings, business degree programs, research and development funds/grants from the Department of Science and Technology, Department of Agriculture, and Commission on Higher Education, technology business incubation, Fablab, co-working space, among others.

UPLB Chancellor Dr. Fernando C. Sanchez, Jr. said the partnership will provide a dedicated space for collaborative endeavors between UPLB researchers and partner organizations.

“This partnership is very important since the University has been pushing forward the technology and commercialization of UPLB’s wide research and knowledge products,” Sanchez said.

“UPLB will be even more responsive to the various needs of the industry sector, particularly for those who are involved in agriculture and entrepreneurship activities,” he added.

DTI Implements Online Services for Product Certification, ICC Sticker Verification

To facilitate ease of doing business through streamlining and automation of frontline service transactions, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has started to process product certifications under the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) through an online portal. The Product Certification Information Management System (PCIMS) features an end-to-end online and paperless processing of Import Commodity Clearance (ICC), Philippine Standard (PS) Safety and Quality Certification Mark License. It also provides an inventory management for Security Papers and ICC Stickers.

“DTI has made it easy for entrepreneurs and the business community to process certifications and avail of frontline services in the comforts of your home or anywhere. No need to be present at any DTI office,” said DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez.

“However, we want to assure you that this does not end here. This will be a continuing process of reform and automation. We will continue to review and streamline processes in BPS as well as in other bureaus. The ultimate ease of doing business is enabling people to do things and all transactions online,” he added.

BPS started implementing the use of PCIMS in its ICC processing in October 2018 parallel to the manual processing of ICC applications. By January 2019, PCIMS was fully implemented and BPS ceased its manual applications for ICC processing.

The PCIMS has the following features: 1) online and paperless filing of applications; 2) certification fees can be paid at any DTI office; 3) first-in, first-out processing; 4) real-time tracking of application status; 4) auto email of Statement of Account, Notice of Non-conformance, Show Cause Orders; 5) Certificates may be claimed at any DTI Office; and 6) auto reminder of surveillance schedules and PS license expiration.

To access the PCIMS, a registration form may be requested through email at bps.scd@dti.gov.ph. Application of product certification may be accessed through www.qualityproducts.dti.gov.ph.

“Businesses will definitely benefit with this shift to online transactions. Apart from the convenience and less time spent on application, it is also cost efficient. We’ve estimated about Php 3,600 in savings per application, from Php 4,170 spent per application down to Php 557. That’s big savings for businesses,” shared Sec. Lopez.

Likewise, DTI is shifting its ICC sticker verification through a mobile application to assist DTI market enforcers and monitors during market enforcement activities, as well as consumers in verifying a certified product.

This digital method using any smartphone will detect the fake ones from the real ICC and PS stickers.

The mobile application will be able to confirm legitimate ICC stickers in products sold in the market through the QR code accompanying each sticker. BPS started issuing ICC stickers with QR codes in July 2018.

Currently, the ICC Verification System is on its pilot testing and can be fully used by 24 April 2019. It will be available for download at Google Play Store on the same date.