ILIGAN CITY (PIA)–In line with the celebration of the national micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) month, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation of Iligan Inc. (CCIFII) hosted Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber to tackle programs for MSMEs.
Resource speakers from the academe,, industry, and government agencies were invited to the said forum.
Department of Trade and Industry Lanao del Norte Consumer Protection Division Chief Maria Lourdes Tiongco said that MSMEs are the backbone of the economy.
“Actually, they are the backbone of the economy. Without them, without our dear MSMEs, wala atoang economy (we don’t have an economy),” she said.
When MSMEs faced challenges during the pandemic, Tiongco shared that their office provided management training and skills training to help them get back to their businesses.
Meanwhile, Joserandy Pabelonio, the acting port services manager of the Philippine Port Authority (PPA), shared the challenges they face, such as the high increase in port tariffs, which were implemented during the pandemic. However, their agency made sure to satisfy their consumers through their services.
“We see to it nga, gina-monitor namo nga dapat kung unsay ginabayaran sa mga negosyante diri, mga port users sa Iligan. Kinahanglan gyud satisfied sila sa serbisyo nga gihatag sa global port,” said Pabelonio.
(We make sure that we are monitoring what should be paid by the traders and port users in Iligan. They must be satisfied with the service provided by the global port)
Furthermore, Cynthia Sanchez of Sy Bee Tin Franchise is hopeful to benefit from the budget presented during the forum, especially since her business was shut down during the pandemic.
“Sana maka-benefit kami ng diniscuss na mga budget and allocations for small business owners (I hope we can benefit from the budget and allocation that were being discussed for small business owners),” she said.
Additionally, the president of ICCIFI, Reggie Punongbayan, emphasized the need for continuous learning and training in order to upgrade, upskill, and upsize MSMEs.
“In order to upgrade our services, upskill our workforces, and upsize our businesses, we need to have continuous learning and training, embrace technology and digitalization, and collaborate and form partnerships,” she said. (CEC/PIA-10/Lanao del Norte)
