MSMEs to Benefit from Philippine Govn’t Infrastructure Program – Concepcion

Plight of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are expected to be lifted further once substantial projects under the Philippine government’s infrastructure program have materialized.

This was stressed by Presidential Consultant for Entrepreneurship Jose Ma. Concepcion III, who said logistics, not just capital, hampers small businesses from further improving their operations.

“I think the moment they really implement all these infrastructure, massive infrastructure, believe me a lot of MSMEs will benefit overnight,” he said in a briefing at the sidelines of the 30th ASEAN Summit.

Concepcion, Chairman and CEO of listed food and beverage firm RFM Corporation and founder of Go Negosyo, said MSMEs “are handicapped because they are in the province and they’re access to the main markets is pretty challenging.”

“ The cost to be able to deliver their produce to where the market is is extremely high,” he said.

The Duterte government plans to roll out about Php 8-9 trillion worth of infrastructure projects until 2022 to help achieve a seven to eight percent growth, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP), by the end of its term.

This program is targeted to lift the country into a middle income economy by the end of the Duterte administration in 2022 and a high income economy by 2040.

For 2017 alone, the government allocated about Php 850 billion of this year’s Php 3.35 trillion national budget for the construction of road networks and transportation facilities.

Economic managers have decided to increase the government’s budget deficit ceiling to three percent of GDP from two percent in the previous administration to have bigger leeway for infrastructure spending.