PHL’s ASEAN chairmanship may boost MSME opportunities

THE Philippines’ chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is expected to expand opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) as increased regional business activity enters the country, according to the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (BAC) Philippines.

“What’s very important is that you will have more big businesses coming in, but I feel that there is also a chance to inspire many of our MSMEs,” ASEAN-BAC Philippines Chairman Jose Ma. “Joey” A. Concepcion III told BusinessWorld.

“I feel strongly that hosting ASEAN in the Philippines is a blessing that may change the lives of many of our Filipino entrepreneurs,” he added.

The Department of Trade and Industry said the chairmanship provides a platform to showcase trade, investment, digital innovation, MSME development and the creative economy.

Mr. Concepcion said while major investors and global business leaders are expected to attend ASEAN-related events, small entrepreneurs should also be included in the broader economic discussion.

“Not everybody will be able to attend the events that will be more or less towards the Manila Bay area, where SM, Solaire and Okada are,” he said on the sidelines of the BusinessWorld Economic Forum on Monday. “The ticket prices will be quite expensive, and of course, the security will be very tight.”

He said the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit in November would be among the key events this year, with efforts to widen access for the public.

As part of this initiative, ASEAN-BAC plans to place LED screens in malls so Filipinos can follow the proceedings.

“We want to show the Filipino people that even if we host ASEAN, which many of them will never be able to get through, we are now creating this platform for them to see what is happening,” Mr. Concepcion said.

Despite the local political turmoil and surging oil prices due to the Iran war, many Filipinos continue to start new businesses, reflecting strong entrepreneurial activity, he said.

“There are many, and that’s why the only thing that we ask them to do is just get a mentor,” Mr. Concepcion said. “It seems easy to start a business, but when you get into it, it becomes hard.”

To support MSMEs, Go Negosyo, founded by Mr. Concepcion, expanded its Trabaho@Negosyo program, a mall-based job fair and mentoring initiative that provides job placement, skill training and entrepreneurship support.

“We continue to focus on helping our Filipino MSMEs, basically mentoring them, providing access to money and access to market,” he said.

He added that ASEAN chairmanship comes at a key moment for small business development.

“This comes once every 10 years… so it’s very important that under his leadership, we push this hard and help struggling entrepreneurs find inspiration,” he said, referring to President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.

Government data showed MSMEs accounted for 99.6% of registered businesses in 2023, underscoring their dominant role in the Philippine economy. — Almira Louise S. Martinez