P1 billion in micro loans for msmEs in 2018
ANOTHER P1 billion in loans will be provided to microentrepreneurs in 2018 to continue the government’s Pondo Para sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) program.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), in a statement issued yesterday, said the additional funds for 2018 will still be coursed through the Office of the President to the Small Business Corp. (SB Corp), an attached agency of the DTI that is mandated to provide financing and capacity building services to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
First launched in January, the P3 program provides micro enterprises an alternative source of financing that is easy to access and made available at a lower interest rate.
As of Nov. 24, DTI said 16,210 micro entrepreneurs have been aided by P3 through four national micro finance institutions (MFIs) and 90 local conduits assisting in delivering the micro-loans in the countryside while 45 MFIs are in the pipeline.
In a span of 11 months since its launching, P485.41 million has been released to partner conduits and P307.80 million released to microfinance borrowers.
Under the P3 Program, a micro enterprise can borrow between P5,000 and P100,000, depending on its business need and repayment capacity, with no collateral requirement and one-day processing.
Payments for these loans can be made daily or weekly.
Interest rate and service fees do not exceed 2.5 percent monthly, significantly lower than the 20 percent monthly rate under the informal 5-6 lending.
The primary beneficiaries of the P3 Program are microenterprises and entrepreneurs that do not have easy access to credit. These include market vendors, agri-business owners and members of cooperatives, and industry associations. SunStar Philippines
The suggestions and inputs made during the National Export Congress held recently in Pasay City are important as the government finalizes the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP), said Undersecretary Nora Terrado of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
“The new PEDP will provide the compass for how we are going to reach or surpass the export target set up for us under the Philippine Development Plan, which is to beat the [export] target of $122 billion to $132 billion by 2022,” Terrado said in her speech.
Terrado said the key strategy of the government is “to use export as a way to manage our trade balance.”
“Export is an important component of our PDP, [as it] represents 30% to 40% of our economy. Therefore it’s important to put focus on areas where we can be market leaders.”
These major focus areas under the PEDP include implementing relevant components to address supply gaps in key products such as agricultural products.
She added: “We need to undertake joint scoping missions to develop a goto market strategy where we could [become] global market leaders.”
Another crucial area is providing support to lawmakers’ endeavors to remove trade barriers and address behind-the-border issues for key products and sectors.
There is also a need to create “a sector-specific collaboration and communication plan” to acquire new markets, as well as a manpower development plan “because people are an important factor in innovation initiatives.”
“People will make the difference, and investments in human resources are critical components of making innovation fly,” said Terrado.
In addition, it is necessary to institute policy reforms that ease the burdens of exporters. “Exporters are in the heart of our agenda and we should make it easy for our exporters to do business within the country and as they go out of the borders,” said the official.
Other important aspects to be included in the export development plan are the need for high-level investment promotion and compliance with standards. “We should be very strategic, we should be mindful of the standards that the market sets, that the market demands not because we just have to comply with them,” said the government official.
Noting the importance of data, Terrado also said that market intelligence must be utilized and leveraged “in order to have strategic business matching opportunities and create transactions that do provide opportunities for our exporters to gain the revenues they want to have.”
Finally, she said, “We need to support endeavors that will make the Philippines improve in the areas of connectivity and technological infrastructure.”
Terrado stated that the proposed export development plans are currently going around the different relevant agencies leading to the finalization of the PEDP.
The DTI-Export Marketing Bureau (EMB) is now in the last stretch of drafting the new PEDP for 20182022 after holding consultations with stakeholders starting August this year. The PEDP will be anchored on PDP 2017-2022, the 10-point socioeconomic agenda of President Rodrigo Duterte, and the existing PEDP 2015-2017.