OTOP program spawns small entrepreneurs

MANILA, Philippines – Local entrepreneurship is on the rise, with total sales for the government initiated One Town One Project (OTOP) Luzon Island Fair more than doubling to P29.5 million, from P14.3 million a year ago.

With the theme “Treasures of the Islands,” the trade fair held on July 8-12 at the Megatrade Halls 1 & 2 of SM Megamall, featured unique and distinctive products and services of 247 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) from the eight regions (38 provinces) of Luzon covering furniture and furnishings, gifts and houseware, processed food, fashion accessories, footwear, novelty products and services.

OTOP Philippines is a priority project of the government, which aims to promote local entrepreneurship and job creation. OTOP highlights the diversity as well as the distinctiveness of every municipality through the development and promotion of a handcrafted product or services, which the MSMEs produce or render with competitive advantage.

The trade fair also featured the Bayong Boulevard which lined up all bayong exhibitors in one section. The Bayong Boulevard is a marketing strategy advocates and promotes the use of bayong bags (made from indigenous materials) as alternative for plastics. The 20 MSMEs who exhibited generated total sales of P1.4 million.

Meanwhile, the government likewise opened the Philippine Product Depot, a brainchild of Trade Secretary Peter B. Favila.

It targets a vast and variegated clientele from institutional buyers to traditional connoisseurs, from tourists to balik–bayans, even from housewives to everyday budget buy seekers.

The depot aims at providing micro, small and medium enterprises from the countryside a three-way push to a better life. These MSMEs shall constitute the nucleus of economically sufficient citizens as they also contribute to showcase Filipino craftsmanship and creativity mostly in products expressly unique in their regions.

They shall be part of a marketing outlet that will allow them to touch base with regular buyers beside the malling crowd. The bonus boost, however, shall be the opportunity to make use of the depot as incubator for design and packaging development and as an alternative and more affordable venue for them to hold their conventions and product launchings.

The DTI, in coordination with iNegosyo, is also in the process of developing a website to familiarize the buying public with available OTOP products in 1,491 municipalities and cities all over the country. This OTOP website carries a virtual brochure to provide a preview of OTOP products which may be procured through the Philippine Product Depot. –Ma. Elisa P. Osorio (The Philippine Star)