MSMEs ASSISTANCE ONLINE. The Cebu provincial capitol is set to open next week the online application through Facebook the assistance program for the micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs) affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Governor Gwendolyn Garcia concurred with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Assistant Secretary Asteria Caberte, Philippine Veterans Bank vice president for product Ofelia Oliva, and Provincial Board (PB) committee on commerce, trade, and industry chairman Glenn Anthony Soco to discuss the guidelines of the program meant to help barangay-based entrepreneurs jobless or bankrupt due to community quarantine. (PNA photo by John Rey Saavedra)
CEBU CITY – The Cebu provincial capitol will open next week the online application through Facebook the assistance program for the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) crisis.
Governor Gwendolyn Garcia on Sunday said the provincial government is set to roll out the assistance program for MSMEs that experienced business reverses due to the pandemic.
Garcia met on Friday with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Assistant Secretary Asteria Caberte, Philippine Veterans Bank vice president for product Ofelia Oliva, and Provincial Board (PB) committee on commerce, trade, and industry chairman Glenn Anthony Soco to discuss the guidelines of the program.
Taking off from the DTI's Negosyo Serbisyo sa Barangay (NSB), the capitol’s MSME program aims to help thousands of Cebuanos who are left jobless or are now bankrupt after their small enterprises were closed due to community quarantine.
"We will assist those who lost their jobs due to business closures,” the governor was quoted as saying in Cebuano in a statement released by Sugbo News, the capitol’s official news outlet.
Funding for the program will be sourced from funds that the Office of the Governor will be allocating to the 18 PB members with an amount of PHP5 million per lawmaker, and PHP15 million for the Office of the Vice Governor, which she earlier announced during the 451st founding anniversary commemoration on Aug. 6.
Based on what was initially agreed, beneficiaries will be identified by the district representatives, after which they will proceed to the DTI for the business development session (BDS).
Garcia gave specific instructions that during the BDS, the applicant should be presented with the businesses that are available to them while also listening to their inputs as they may have already started working on their own enterprise.
The program will not be a direct financial aid or in a form of cash but will be given through a coupon. The assistance ranges from PHP5,000 to PHP10,000 which is considered as seed capital.
To ensure they will be registered, a desk or window will be made available for them in every town or city where they belong. A focal person will be assigned to assist the applicants.
Non-payment for the issuance of permits is still being considered.
Meanwhile, the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office will issue a certification showing the applicant's economic status.
The Veterans Bank can also help businesses that have closed and will need more funding through its MSME window program for those who are affected by the pandemic, Oliva said. (PNA)
