by admin | Jun 7, 2018 | Business, National News
Boracay initiative to help MSMEs of Boracay, Aklan
MAKATI – Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez led the opening of the Bagong Buhay Boracay store, the latest program of the agency in providing market access to the products of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) from Boracay.
“This is just the beginning of bringing Boracay products to the mainstream market. We will continue to extend financial, technical, design, and marketing support to our MSMEs in the area even after the island re-opens,” said Sec. Lopez.
Following the closure of the island to tourists and a series of consultations with the local government and MSMEs in the island, DTI Regional Operations Group, DTI Region VI, Bureau of Domestic Trade and Promotion (BDTP), and Design Center of the Philippines (DCP) pooled their expertise and resources in launching the store in Makati.
The store, located at the BDTP West Wing Showroom, features food delicacies, wearables, fashion accessories, home décor, and souvenir products from 21 MSMEs in the island, comprising of 7 food processing businesses and 14 craft manufacturers. These exhibitors have over 150 beneficiaries in Boracay. Some items available for sale are products of social enterprises supporting out-of-school-youths in Boracay and Aklan.
DTI will also bring Aklanon products to malls, supermarkets, pasalubong centers, airports, seaports, jetty ports in Manila, Cebu, and Iloilo. In a recent development, some items featured in the Bagong Buhay Boracay store will also be carried by Kultura in SM Megamall.
“We guarantee our MSMEs that DTI will keep on providing holistic assistance for their products in terms of microfinancing support through the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3), product development, and innovation. Apart from these, we also help them in branding, marketing strategy development, and market access through Go Lokal! stores as well as of One Town, One Product (OTOP) Philippine hub,” Sec. Lopez added.
Meanwhile, the local government of Malay, Aklan expressed their gratitude to the efforts of DTI in helping the affected MSMEs in the island. Mr. Rowen Aguirre of the Office of Malay Mayor Ciceron Cawaling emphasized the importance of providing new market access to the micro and small entrepreneurs, which primarily depend on their daily income to survive.
DTI will also provide skills training and start-up kits to the residents who wish to engage in other alternative livelihood activities. This include siomai making and screen printing.
“In the coming weeks, we will be launching other events to bring the Boracay experience to the metro. We will have Boracay Festivals in Manila wherein apart from the products we can buy in the island, we will also bring in the activities the island is famous for, such as fire dancing, tattoo artists, hair braiders, caricature artists and more,” said Sec. Lopez.
“We encourage everyone to support our brothers and sisters in Boracay and Aklan by visiting the Boracay Stores and buying their products,” Sec. Lopez concluded.
by admin | Jun 5, 2018 | National News
In time for the opening of school, the Department of Trade and Industry urges stores in the Philippines selling school supplies to sell their products within the Suggested Retail Prices (SRP).
The DTI recently published the price guide for school supplies in May 2018. The suggested retail price (SRP) list covered different brands and corresponding prices of notebooks, pad paper, ballpens, crayons, erasers, rulers and sharpeners.
The DTI reminded sellers that school supplies like notebooks, pad paper, pencils, pens and crayons should have proper markings like brand name, trademark, number of pages for paper products, type, size and grammage of paper, and name and address of manufacturer or importer. Crayons must also have the marking “non-toxic” aside from the trade mark, brand name and manufacturer’s name.
For this year, several brands of notebooks and pad papers increased their prices due to the high cost of raw materials imported from China and the depreciation of Peso value against U.S dollar. However, prices of other school supplies remained stable.
The SRPs of some brands of composition, writing, and spiral notebooks (Advance, Topline, Best Buy, Pandayan, Papelikha, Orions, and Veco) increased by Php 1.00 to Php 4.00. Merit, on the other did not increase their prices. Composition and writing notebooks are still priced at Php 12.75 (without plastic cover) and Php 34.00 (with plastic cover) while their spiral notebook without plastic cover is still priced at Php 19.00.
Similarly, some brands of writing pad papers (grade 1-4) (Easywrite, Best Buy, Sakura, Pandayan, Papelikha, and Orions) increased by Php 0.50 to Php 6.00) while for intermediate paper, some brands (Easy write, Best, Best Buy (book paper), Pandayan, Papellikha and Orions) raised their prices by Php 1.75 to Php 5.00.
Despite these increases, Merit’s writing and intermediate pads are still at Php 12.00 and Php 25.00, respectively. Likewise, Best Buy’s intermediate (bond paper) pad paper is still priced at Php 18.00.
Meanwhile, two brands of pencil (Best buy and Pandayan) recorded an increase of Php 4.50 and Php 1.00, respectively, while the other brands maintained their last year’s prices.
Generally, some brands of ball pens did not increase their prices since last year except for Marvy, Avanti, and Pentel which recorded an increase by Php 1.00 to Php 6.00.
For crayons, HBW Jumbo No. 8 decreased its price by Php 11.00 while other brands (Crayola, Li’l hands, Faber Castell, HBW, Best Buy and Pandayan) did not change their prices since last year. However, brands such as Sterling and Colleen increased their prices by Php 2.00 to Php 10.00 for boxes of Regular No. 8, Regular No. 16, and Regular No. 24 and Jumbo 8.
There were no recorded price movements for sharpener while one brand of eraser (Orions) increased by Php 2.00. For ruler, Orions increased by Php 3.00 while Php 2.00 for Sterling.
“There have been increases in some staples but consumers can check for school items sold in bundle or promo packs which can help them save Php 30.75 depending on the brand,” says Consumer Protection Group (CPG) Undersecretary Atty. Ruth B. Castelo.
She also added that based on their discussions with paper manufacturers, there will be no more price increases until December 2018.
The Gabay sa Pamimili ng School Supplies is already posted on the DTI’s e-Presyo, which can be accessed throughwww.e-presyo.dti.gov.ph or view the price guide by clicking on the following link: https://dti.gov.ph/media/advisories/11985-gabay-school-supplies-srp.
The DTI intensifies its monitoring activities to ensure that prices of school supplies are stable. The Department will also post the price guide in establishments and stores in the regions and provinces.
Also, the DTI advises the consumers to choose well according to their needs.
by admin | May 31, 2018 | National News
The Department of Trade and Industry Cebu Provincial Office (DTI Cebu), in coordination with the Cebu Technological University (CTU), will soon launch a “Food Innovation Center” in Tuburan and Daanbantayan, Cebu.
The center is meant to provide micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) a facility to improve food production/ processing and develop new ideas for businesses within the area as well as neighboring towns.
DTI will provide the equipment for the food centers through the department’s Shared Service Facilities (SSF) program. The equipment will be housed at the CTU campus.
The CTU Tuburan Food Innovation Center will be launched next month, while the center at the CTU Daanbantayan is tentatively scheduled in the third quarter of the year.
The SSF project goal is to enable MSMEs to increase their productivity; accelerate MSMEs competitiveness by giving them access to energy efficient technologies and more sophisticated equipment; encourage the graduation of MSMEs to the next level where they could tap a better and wider market share and be integrated in the global supply chain; and address the gaps and bottlenecks in the value chain of priority industry clusters.
MSME development is a key strategy to achieve the government’s goal of inclusive growth and jobs generation. The development aims to improve the competitiveness of MSMEs by providing them with machinery, equipment, tools, systems, skills and knowledge under a shared system.
by admin | May 29, 2018 | National News
29 May 2018 – The Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC) takes a leap as it embraces its new role as the Philippines’ Global MSME Academy, by virtue of a Department Order (DO) issued and signed by Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez on April 18, 2018.
The order designates PTTC as a Center dedicated to the administration, development and conduct of trade-related training and management of facilities to support the requirements of globalizing industries and services most especially the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Bureaus and offices within the DTI and all its attached agencies are enjoined to integrate their MSME-related training programs and projects with PTTC.
Fully dedicated to this commitment, PTTC created Strategic Business Units (SBUs) and customized its programs on three major industries – processed food, services, and consumer goods, and categorized by MSME levels – foundation, intermediate and advanced courses. From the foundation courses on business management, finance and marketing, and production management, each SBU has a focused training pathway with specialized course modules to address expansion in the domestic market and lead MSMEs to gain access to market compliance and internationalization.
PTTC also aligns its Entrepreneurship training programs for the youth, women and Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in tandem with other institutions providing capacity-building programs for these focused sectors.
“MSMEs need to be inspired then nurtured to cope with the ever-changing environment, where survival somehow depends on knowledge, skills and attitude. Partnerships and collaboration with international content providers as well as homegrown experts shall be maximized to enable PTTC to address a wider range of training needs of MSMEs,” said PTTC Executive Director Nestor P. Palabyab.
Local partners include The Philippine MICE Academy, The Philippine Center on Entrepreneurship Go Negosyo, Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Foundation Inc., World Trade Center, and Center for Future Leadership while International partner institutions are Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO), International Trade Center (ITC) Geneva, Switzerland, Association of Overseas Technical Scholarship (Japan), Leipzig University, Germany’s Hinrich Foundation, and British Council of the Philippines.
Apart from these partnerships, PTTC also collaborates with e-learning institutions such as the ITC-SME Trade Academy, ASEAN SME Academy, and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Academy for online training courses in finance, human resource, marketing, trade and logistics, management, operations and technology.
New training programs, including regional programs, are also offered by the Center such as the recently launched Food Connect Program, designed to create an alternative environment for experiential learning for food manufacturers. Activities include:
- Food Talks or briefings on International Labeling Requirements of Major Importing Countries such as USA, China, Japan and UAE;
- Mentoring and consultative sessions by key industry practitioners providing practical, innovative tips on processes that can be adopted by MSMEs in food safety, shelf life, food processing technology and innovation, basic labeling requirements, process and product assessment;
- Awareness on the regulatory compliance of Food and Drugs Administration- License to Operate/Certificate of Product Registration (FDA-LTO/CPR), HALAL, and International Food Standards;
Likewise, undergoing major improvements are the Center’s training facilities. The Food Connect Hub is available for activities related to the Food Connect Program, with working spaces available for small group gathering, networking and negotiations. Food Lab, is dedicated for food testing such as Water Activity, Water and pH Content and Metal Detector, intended for initial assessment of food properties for third party laboratory testing; and finally, the DigiFab Training Facility for product packaging prototyping, and the Creative Hub which gathers the young creative entrepreneurs to hone their skills and talents.
As the trade training arm of DTI, mandated under the Administrative Code of 1987 and Executive Order No. 133, Series of 1987, PTTC’s mission is to provide stakeholders with high quality and relevant training programs at par with the best in the world, that transform Philippine MSMEs into global business entrepreneurs.
by admin | May 25, 2018 | Business, National News
ERIKA MARIEL GINES
BIZCON. Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. and Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry executives join former president and Pampanga second district Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for a photo opportunity, after her keynote speech at the 27th North Luzon Area Business Conference held at the LausGroup Event Center. (Erika Mariel Gines Photo)
“This area business conference is a testament that indeed, Central Luzon and the province of Pampanga in general, is becoming the center of growth not only in the region but of the whole country.”
This was the statement of Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (PamCham) vice chairman Rene Romero during the culminating ceremony of the 27th North Luzon Area Business Conference (NLABC) held Friday, May 18, at the LausGroup Event Center in the City of San Fernando.
He noted that the three-day event proved to be “one of the most successful” area business conference of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), as it gathered over 600 delegates coming from all over North Luzon.
“We are really very happy with the outcome of our event, as modesty aside, while it is our first time hosting this conference, we have come up with the biggest and most organized NLABC I have seen for the last 30 years that I have been part of the chamber movement,” he relayed.
He added that the positive feedback of the participants proved that event was able to showcase the latest developments in Pampanga which include state-of-the-art facilities, infrastructure, and the province’s renowned hospitality sector, further centering the province’s status as a major economic destination.
“In fact, delegates coming Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), all expressed their awe upon seeing our province’s progress. They said they were impressed of Pampanga’s recent developments including the LausGroup Event Center, our main roads like the Jose Abad Santos Avenue and the McArthur Highway, business districts, the Clark Freeport Zone, and even the hotels and malls including the newly-opened SM City Telabastagan,” he shared.
“This goes to show that we are now experiencing the spill over of Metro Manila and big players are now eyeing us as their next prospect. The NLABC is one of our way of preparing for this forthcoming economic boom,” he added.
The executive then relayed that the business organization will continue to hold on to the claim that “This is our time,” this year’s theme for the 27th NLABC.
“This is just the start, and for a very long time and through the generations to come, we will not stop or plateau. It will be a continuous process,” he concluded.
The prestigious business conference, organized annually by PCCI, aimed to inform, inspire, and motivate businesses to spur countryside economic growth in Central and North Luzon regions.
This year, highlights of the event include plenary sessions led by world-renowned businessman and AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes, top Filipino economist Dr. Bernie M. Villegas, and Department of Public Works and Highways Undersecretary for Planning and Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Dr. Maria Catalina E. Cabral, among others.
The event was keynoted by former President and Second District Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who shared the government’s plans and activities currently in the pipeline for the years ahead, demonstrating a strong focus on transforming the province as a ‘Megalopolis’.
Also part of the programs and activities were various seminars, business matchings, networking sessions, invitational golf tournament, and a mini regional trade fair.
Read more: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1744035/Pampanga/Local-News/Business-conference-showcases-Central-Luzon-Pampangas-progress
by admin | May 24, 2018 | National News
Makati—Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon M. Lopez met with Deputy United States Trade Representative (USTR) Jeffrey D. Gerrish and his delegation to further trade and investment ties and continue with the exploratory discussions for a possible free trade agreement (FTA) between the Philippines (PH) and the United States (US). The two countries agreed that an FTA would be a win for both countries, as both acknowledge there are already opportunities under the current Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) that both teams can work on to facilitate immediately more trade.
This follows the meeting of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and U.S. President Donald Trump during the 2017 ASEAN Summit and the statement of USTR Robert Lighthizer, acknowledging the need to strengthen bilateral relations with countries in the Asia Pacific, including PH during a Congressional hearing last March.
“We are looking forward to exploring a free trade agreement with the U.S. Meanwhile, we can simultaneously pursue low-hanging opportunities like the existing TIFA and the privileges under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) of the U.S.,” said Trade Secretary Lopez.
Deputy USTR Gerrish said that “President Trump has made clear his commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, and the United States values our very important trade relationship with the Philippines,” and that “greater engagement on trade and investment will benefit both countries.”
PH currently enjoys preferential duty-free entry to the US through its GSP scheme. In 2017, GSP exports accounts for 17.6% of PH exports to the US, valued at US$ 1.492 billion. Leading GSP exports include tires, sugar, electronics, and fruit and vegetable juices. The GSP was also recently renewed to be effective for three years, instead of the annual review.
The renewed GSP also extended the duty-free treatment to travel goods such as suitcases; vanity and attaché cases; handbags; backpacks; travel, sports and similar bags and cases. The DTI wishes to use this momentum to add footwear to the GSP list. This, in turn, will promote Filipino-made shoes and to encourage foreign shoe manufacturers to locate in the Philippines.
DTI Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo likewise pointed out that under the current TIFA, both side are working on addressing policies and rules that can facilitate at once the flow of goods between the two countries, such as those governing import valuation mechanism, and clarification on tariff application on certain goods.
DTI Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado also noted the PH creative industry is benefitting from being excluded from the USTR Special 301 Watch List, a list of countries with deficient intellectual property protections, for the 5th straight year. Usec. Terrado also said that the DTI is planning a trade roadshow in the US to promote PH products.
