DTI conducts workshop to enhance SME capability

Wednesday 26th of January 2011

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Jan 26 (PIA 9) – the Department of Trade and Industry will conduct a Strategic Planning Workshop on Feb. 9-10 at one of the hotels here.

The workshop is geared at improving and strengthening the capability of the Zamboanga Peninsula (ZamPen) Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Core Group members in assisting SMEs in the region.

DTI regional director Nazrullah B. Manzur said the workshop will focus on an approach or strategy on the promotion and marketing of champion products of the region such as rubber, seaweeds, processed food, mango, coconut, and abaca.

The workshop will include concepts and applications of Value Chain Approach (VCA) including VCA definition, concepts, and basic framework like how VCA has been used, and in analyzing and evaluating VCA and limitations of VCA.

Elements of Value Chain Analysis will also be integrated; under this discussion falls the selection of industry sector, market analysis, value chain mapping, assessment of industry performance, establishing benchmark, and formulating policy, programs, and projects.

Day two activity is focused on the participants’ actual workshop; this will involve review and validation of the Regional Product Champions Value Chain such as rubber & rubber products; seaweed and seaweed products; fish and fish products; coconut and coconut products; mango and mango products; and abaca and abaca products.

The two-day rigid strategic planning workshop will end with the preparation of the Regional Industry Cluster Plans of the above mention regional champion products.

“The output of the workshop is an industry cluster plan for each sector,” Manzur said. # (JP Alvarez –PIA 9).