Photo courtesy of DTI.
QUEZON CITY (PIA) — The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has launched the Enterprise Rehabilitation Financing (ERF) Program which offers financial assistance to businesses impacted by Typhoon Kristine (Trami).
“This ‘ERF Kristine program’ is aimed at providing the affected businesses with the resources they need to rebuild, recover, and restore their operations,” DTI Secretary Christina Roque said during the program launch on Nov. 7.
She emphasized that this initiative is aligned with the Bagong Pilipinas brand of governance of the Marcos administration, to help businesses get back on their feet and overcome the adverse effect of the storm.
The program, which has a P2 billion fund, is being implemented through the Small Business Corp Corp., a government corporation under the policy program and administrative supervision of the Small and Medium Enterprise Development (SMED) Council of the DTI.
It aims to assist micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in areas placed under a state of calamity due to the storm.
Under the ERF program, these businesses can avail of a loan from SBCorp with a ceiling of P300,000, payable monthly for up to three years with zero interest and zero principal payment for the first year.
For the second year, the interest rate will be 1 percent monthly based on the diminishing balance for the succeeding years.
The program also includes a three-month grace period for interest and principal.
“We really need this fund out there to help the people to be able to bounce back, especially, malapit na ang Pasko,” Sec. Roque said.
“They could also take advantage of the Christmas season to be able to sell a lot of their products and to be able to have a merry Christmas also,” the DTI chief added.
Roque highlighted that President Marcos Jr. is giving his unwavering support to the rehabilitation and recovery of enterprises affected by the typhoon.
“This loan is really designed to really help those that were affected by typhoon Kristine. So, I encourage everyone from Luzon and all the affected areas to take advantage of this loan program,” she said.
The DTI said eligible MSMEs may avail of the loan within three processing days. Applications can be done online via the SBCorp loan portal at https://brs.sbcorp.ph.. (PIA DMD)
