In support of the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI)’s efforts to provide more business opportunities and help local traders improve their knowledge of entrepreneurship, members of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Development Council in Tarlac went out on the streets recently to hold a caravan, a first-ever for entrepreneurs and aspiring businessmen in the city.
The caravan was organized in partnership with the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) of Tarlac, Tarlac Provincial Cooperative and Enterprise Development Office, Tarlac State University, Tarlac City Cooperative and Enterprise Development Office, among other institutions.
During the event, members of the MSME Development Council also engaged in a series of virtual learning workshops, consultation sessions and Mentor ME programs with business experts from the DTI’s Provincial Business Development Division (PBBD).
In a press statement, DTI PBBD chief Zaida Garibay explained that the undertaking aims to provide business opportunities for Tarlaqueños and help local traders improve their company’s product quality as well as knowledge and skills in entrepreneurship.
“The government intends to scale up the MSME sector by providing them a holistic set of services that will enable them to grow and participate not only in the local market but also in the global market,” Garibay said.
She also reminded MSMEs from Tarlac to avail of the DTI’s Shared Service Facilities (SSF), which have been established in the province to help increase the productivity of MSMEs through a sharing scheme with other MSMEs. She particularly asked the participants to look into availing the services of other SSFs that can help upgrade their production.
The said SSFs include the Fabrication Laboratory at the Philippine Science High School Campus in Clark Freeport and at the Don Honorio Ventura State University in Bacolor, Pampanga. Both Fablabs have the capacity to produce computer-designed three-dimensional prototypes of products.
For her part, DTI OIC-Provincial Director Florencia Balilo stressed that the activity is also meant to help establish more MSMEs in Tarlac by introducing other innovative measures through social media. “In this fast-paced era, we will focus more on digitalization so that our MSMEs can cope with the digital world and will not be left behind,” Balilo said.
PCCI Tarlac president and Provincial MSME Development Council chairman Leonardo Cudo, meanwhile, commended all the participating government agencies as well as the existing and potential MSMEs in the province for their support in the activity.
He noted that the event’s target is to nurture local businesses and create new MSMEs among those who have attended the training sessions.
“More entrepreneurs will mean more opportunities, more jobs, and, of course, more taxes. This means that the government’s support goes back to the government. Our support of each other is a domino effect that will result in economic growth,” Cudo said.
Aside from the DTI, other MSME Development Council members that participated in the consultation sessions were the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and the Philippine Information Agency (PIA).