Solon seeks ‘financial’ booster jabs for pandemic-hit MSMEs
IN response to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., call for more employment and livelihood for the Filipino people, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva filed Senate Bill (SB) 138, or the “MSME Stimulus Act”, creating the “MSME Growth Stimulus Program”.
The stimulus program proposes to extend financial assistance, strengthen, and facilitate the growth and development of MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) for regional job generation and preservation.
Under the proposed MSME Growth Stimulus Program, interest-free loan programs will be available for small enterprises through the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).
The bill also mandates the Department of Finance (DOF), through the Social Security System (SSS) wage subsidies, to cover all or a portion of the wages of the employees of qualified MSMEs affected by emergencies.
Villanueva said that small enterprises need “booster shots” to keep them afloat and keep their employees. Many MSMEs, Villanueva said, were hardly hit by the Covid pandemic, suffered losses, closed shop, and laid off employees.
According to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), MSMEs comprise 99.5% of all businesses in the country and generate 62.66% of the country’s employment in 2020.
“Now that the economy is opening up, our MSMEs need booster shots of government aid to keep local goods and services afloat and help MSMEs keep their employees,” he said.
Villanueva said that SB 138, will assist MSMEs to become resilient and “disaster-proof,” based on the lessons learned from the pandemic and recent economic crises.
The MSME Stimulus Contingency Fund will provide assistance for priority job-generating industries that are affected by disasters, public health emergencies, armed conflict, and other related contingencies such as technological or policy-related disruptions.
“The MSME Growth Stimulus Program shows how much we believe and take pride in our local enterprises and entrepreneurs as crucial components in our economic recovery,” Villanueva said.
Villanueva further said that MSMEs are keys to popularizing locally made products in the domestic and international markets, especially as the country’s economy is recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
