Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion said Alert Level 1 should stay despite warnings of possible increase in cases of the new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and amid the threat of a new sub variant of the Omicron.
Concepcion also expressed support to organized labor’s suggestion for a P100-billion in subsidized loans for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to augment the wage increase granted by different Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards for minimum wage earners.
“We should not raise the alert level even if infections come up to thousands as long as hospital utilization remains low. We should emulate other countries which are not locking down their economies even if cases are high… because hospital utilization is low,” Concepcion said at the Laging Handa public briefing yesterday.
Concepcion said if Alert Level is raised to 2 or 3, small businesses which have just restarted will lose their momentum and banks which have restructured existing loans to clients will lose their confidence.
Tourism should not be locked down because “if we quarantine tourists , the economy will collapse,” he added.
The country moving forward, mobility is doing well businsses are coming back. Consumer spending is high despite higher inflation caused by the Ukraine-Russia war,” Concepcion said.
With elections now over, Concepcion said governos and mayors can focus on the vaccination drive and booster shots although “we are not sure if the next administration will continue the vaccination program.”
“If not a lot of Filipinos are getting booster shots, we will just be wasting money (if we buy more doses). Local government units should help in the booster program and convince people
In a separate statement, Concepcion said helping MSMEs will result in more inclusive, more sustainable growth for the economy and will benefit more workers in the long run.
“If we are to provide more jobs to more Filipinos, we have to grow the sector that accounts for more than half of the employment in the country,” Concepcion said, referring to the loan proposed by labor.
Concepcion said while wage increases are welcome, generating jobs will bring more inclusive and sustainable growth. The incoming administration, he said, must protect MSMEs as they will be key to job creation, and added that it would be difficult for micro enterprises to manage the additional costs of wage increases. “These micro enterprises live hand-to-mouth right now, and are still repaying their loans,” he said.
Larger businesses, meanwhile, are still dealing with higher cost of commodities.
Concepcion said increased economic activity will encourage large companies to step up their production, driving demand for workers and pulling up wages to entice them into their workforce.
At the Laging Handa public briefing Concepcion said the country’s economic health goes hand-in-hand with efforts to boost vaccinations and maintain lower alert levels. “It is important that our economic frontliners remain protected, even as our infections are now muted,” he said.
As of March 2022, the private sector employs nearly half of the 47 million Filipinos who are currently in the labor force.
MSMEs were severely affected by mobility restrictions during the pandemic, and continued to suffer from higher commodity prices and supply chain disruptions when the conflict between Russia and Ukraine broke out. Larger corporations, meanwhile, stand to become adversely affected by decreased productivity due to absenteeism and prolonged symptoms brought on by long Covid.
