‘The gradual opening of brick-and-mortar shops and food courts last year triggered the start of economic recovery and production, stoking even local tourism and thus, saving more jobs.’
FOOD security, economic recovery from the pandemic, public health, energy supply, jobs and reduction of poverty are among the priorities of the new Marcos administration. There are many other areas of concern in the “comprehensive, all-inclusive plan for economic transformation” that President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said was being drafted by his economic team, but those listed above definitely take precedence.
Central to the President’s desire to resuscitate the economy which is just recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and is still grappling with high prices of imported oil, wheat, rice and other food imports due to the Russia-Ukraine war, is the challenge of making small businesses viable and profitable.
President Marcos recognizes that micro, small, medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are crucial in the nation’s economy as they comprise 99 percent of all business establishments in the country and generate 62.6 percent of jobs for Filipinos.
The impact of MSMEs on the lives of every Filipino became apparent during the COVID-19 lockdowns in March-December, 2020 when many small stores were closed, thousands of jobs were lost and businessmen waded in a flood of losses and bankruptcies. The gradual opening of brick-and-mortar shops and food courts last year triggered the start of economic recovery and production, stoking even local tourism and thus, saving more jobs.
The incoming House of Representatives is on the right path in helping the President achieve his dream for a robust, efficient MSME sector. In previous Congresses, the low-numbered bills are reserved for the Speaker or the presumptive Speaker, so there now in the House of Representatives is House Bill No. 1 entitled “Government Financial Institutions Unified Initiatives to Distressed Enterprises for Economic Recovery or Guide Act.”
This bill filed by Leyte 1st District Rep. Martin Romualdez, Tingog partylist Reps. Yedda Romualdez and Jude Acidre, and presidential son Ilocos Norte 1st District Rep. Sandro Marcos, mandates the government financial institutions, such as Land Bank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the Philippines, to expand their loan programs for MSMEs especially those most affected by the pandemic.
This measure, if it becomes a law, will alleviate somehow the problem of working capital for the small entrepreneurs, which is an important step in empowering the MSMEs, although the problems of packaging, promoting and distributing their products and services remain a big challenge.
