The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) asked Thursday, March 5, lawmakers to give their all-out support to the country's textile industry by helping the Philippine Textile Research Institute (PTRI), the agency’s textile research and development arm, promote its textile-related scientific developments, technologies, services, and programs.

DOST Secretary Fortunato "Boy" T. de la Peña made this call during the Senate webinar on the state of the country’s textile economy held Thursday. "We need the concurrence of our legislators to move the advocacy for textiles to be regarded as an engine for growth in nation-building, while textiles also act to conserve the arts, culture, and tradition, in ties that bind us in community, and weave our society as a people," he said.

The DOST chief expressed hope that the two-day Senate webinar "will spark ideas and provide inspiration for policies and legislation that will enable and support Philippine textiles, and the vision of TELA Pilipinas, such that, in twenty years, to quote Ambisyon Natin 2040, “Filipinos enjoy a strongly rooted, comfortable, and secure life”." De la Peña cited anew the PTRI's invaluable work in textile research, development and innovation and the services it provides to the industry and to the Philippine textile economy.

"I commend the resolve and commitment of the Institute as made manifest in the conduct of the 2021 Annual TELA (Textiles Empowering Lives Anew) Stakeholders Conference." He said TELA has been the brand, the advocacy, and campaign carried by the DOST-PTRI in its initiatives and stakeholder engagements that aims to boost Philippine textiles and its allied industries’ towards sustainability and global competitiveness.

"In truth, I share their aspirations of empowering the lives of the textile stakeholders, in particular, and our Filipino people in general, through science and technology-based solutions.” The PTRI celebrated its 54th founding anniversary in January.

During the Textile Stakeholders Conference held on Jan. 27, 2021, de la Peña said the PTRI went beyond the development and deployment of its relevant technologies during the very early days of the pandemic amid the challenging lockdowns in the first quarter of 2020.

“The Institute has continued to provide technical and scientific advice in the continuing development of facemask and protective wear for community use.”

De la Peña cited that the PTRI successfully mobilized the support of private-sector partners for its Quick Response Project on the Development and Production of ReWear Face Masks that paved way for the delivery of some 600,000pieces of re-usable, washable and re-wearable masks to the national government agencies through the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD).

“PTRI had creatively crafted its every move to deliver on its mandate and ensure that this extends to the regions by providing them with the capacity to produce and innovate on yarns, using raw materials available to them, for the production of textiles by the many weavers and artisans in the locality and at the same time, promote the conservation of the rich culture and tradition of the region,” he said.