As the number one consumer of goods, the Philippine government itself should be the micro, small, and medium enterprises' (MSMEs) biggest market because this will benefit the local economy, presidential aspirant Vice President Leni Robredo said on Monday, November 22.

The Vice President was a guest on Go Negosyo’s “Go Nego Show Kandidatalks” to discuss her plans and programs for the MSMEs.

“Dapat sana iyong pinakamalaking market ng mga maliliit na negosyante, gobyerno. Iyong gobyerno iyong number one consumer na dapat sana maraming negosyo ‘yung nabibigay niya sa mga maliliit (The biggest market of the small businesses should be the government. The government is the number one consumer so it should provide a lot of businesses to small ones),” Robredo said.

“Ang pamahalaan kasi dapat sana sa MSMEs bumibili kung sumasabay naman ang presyo at kalidad. Sa mga mahihirapang makasabay sa presyuhan, kailangan may ibang pamantayan maliban sa presyo (The government should be purchasing from MSMEs especially if the price and quality are at par. For those that will have a hard time offering the same price, there should be other standards other than prices),” she added.

She wants the government to help MSMEs play a big role in the public sector procurement, batting for programs that will assist small and medium enterprises to have the capabilities needed to supply for government projects.

READ: Robredo wants level playing field for businesses, workers

When she was a representative during the 16th Congress, she introduced the Sustainable Public Procurement Bill, which aims to amend the procurement law so the public sector will also consider the “economic impact,” as well as the environmental and social aspects, of their purchases.

During the pandemic, Robredo initiated the online platforms iskaparate.com and the Community Mart to help small business owners who had to close their businesses and employees who lost their jobs.

The website allowed them to transition into online selling through the Iskaparate website. The Community Mart mobile app, on the other hand, was an online delivery service that linked the public market to households through tricycle drivers.

Robredo emphasized that MSMEs are the most vulnerable during times of crisis that’s why the government must have programs in place since they have a small capital to sustain their businesses.

READ: Robredo bats for inclusion of ‘ayuda,’ MSME grants in 2022 budget

“And iyong programa hindi lang talaga sa pagpahiram ng pera pero sa pagsiguro na kapag nangyayari ‘yung mga ganitong pandemic, mayroon tayong alternative sa kanila (And the program should not only be about lending money but making sure that when a pandemic like this happens, there is an alternative for them),” Robredo added.

Since the MSMEs are the “backbone of the economy” and 99.5 percent of businesses operating in the country are MSMEs, the vice president said that the government should prioritize them by mentoring and upscaling how to give them alternatives.

She stressed the importance of “flexibility” because this will allow businesses to transition in case of a crisis.

Robredo shared that she wants to earmark P100 billion to offer a “conditional” stimulus package to MSMEs and provide skills training, livelihood grants, and online job-matching platforms. The “condition” is that they won’t lay off employees.

She is also focused on building “targeted infrastructure” that will protect businesses and “promote outdoor activities” that can continue operating “because COVID is here to stay.”

“In the long term, dapat talaga iyong mindset sa pagpaplano ay (the mindset in planning should be) geared towards creating more green spaces, more open spaces at (and) well-ventilated infrastructure,” Robredo said.