THURSDAY, 07 JULY 2011 22:22 MAX V. DE LEON / REPORTER
THE government has launched the SME Development Plan (SMEDP) for 2011 to
2016 that seeks to generate 2 million additional jobs from the micro,
small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector by the end of the Aquino
administration.
Trade Undersecretary Merly Cruz said the SMEDP rests on four pillars:
the enabling business environment, access to finance, access to markets,
and production and efficiency.
"This year, our target is to generate 340,000 new jobs [from the MSME
sector]. We also target to increase the sector's gross value added to 40
percent from the current 37.5 percent," Cruz told reporters at the
sidelines of the SME Summit at the Philippine International Trading
Center in Pasay City on Thursday.
To help achieve this target, the DTI has already reduced the application
period for business name registration to 15 minutes. The DTI and the
Department of the Interior and Local Government are also improving the
business-permit licensing system of the local government units.
In terms of access to financing, Cruz said the SB Corp. is now
developing the risk-based financing that allows MSMEs to secure loans
without collateral. Government financial institutions are also rolling
out their "green financing" program for the sector.
To augment their access to market, the government will start putting up
the Tindahang Pinoy in major cities in the different regions. Tindahang
Pinoy will be put up initially in Clark, Cebu and Davao.
Also, the DTI and the Department of Tourism will start distributing
brochures to hotel rooms so the guests only need to fill out order
forms. Their orders will then be sourced from the Tindahang Pinoy.
In the near future, Cruz said Tindahang Pinoy would be offered for
franchise to entrepreneurs so it would be totally private sector-driven.
