San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora announced that around 200 new businesses have opened in the city and expressed hope that this trend will continue in the following months and years as San Juan continues to look forward to a more prosperous future.
Mayor Francis Zamora
"As of Nov. 6, 2023, kumpara sa nakaraang taon, halos 200 negosyo po ang nadagdag mula sa dating 6,975, ngayon po ay 7,155 na. Dumadami po lalo ang mga negosyo dito sa San Juan at tayo po ay umaasa na ito'y bilang ay tataas pa sa mga darating na taon (Compared to last year, as of Nov. 6, 2023, around 200 new businesses were added to the 6,975 establishments in the city before. We now have a total of 7,155 businesses operating in the city. More and more businessmen are investing here in San Juan and we are hoping that this number will continue to rise in the coming year)," Zamora said.
He said the Greenhills Mall, which is considered as one of the largest and most iconic business establishment in San Juan, had opened its newest wing in November opening new opportunities for businesses.
"Yung ating tiangge ay nananatiling isa sa mga dahilan kung bakit tayo dinadalaw hindi lamang ng mga Pilipino ngunit patin na mga dayuhan. We have big malls and commercial centers that are now fully operational dahil tapos na din po ang pandemya, nakikita natin na bumabalik na din po ang sigla ng negosyo dito sa San Juan (Our tiangge remains as one of the reasons why we are being visited not just by Filipinos but also by foreigners. We have big malls and commercial centers that are now fully operational due to the end of the pandemic and we are seeing that the economic situation of San Juan is slowly getting back to normal)," he explained.
Zamora also cited the city's achievements in peace and order as the reasons why more and more business owners are investing in San Juan.
The city of San Juan has the lowest crime rate among other cities in Metro Manila, according to data from the Philippine National Police (PNP), and was recently awarded by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) as the first city in Metro Manila with 100 percent of its barangays drug-cleared.
San Juaneño First Policy
The mayor explained that the city is fully implementing its “San Juaneño First Policy” program. This means the city will prioritize providing jobs to its residents.
"Meron tayong pinapatupad na San Juaneño First policy kung saan gusto natin na mga taga San juan ang magtatrabaho sa mga negosyo dito sa San Juan. Once people have work, they can now take care of their families (We are implementing what we call San Juaneño First policy where we want San Juaneños to work at establishments here in San Juan. Once people have work, they can now take care of their families)," he said.
"Kung ang iha-hire ninyo ay taga-San Juan, 'yung biyahe nila, maiksi lang. They will spend less for transportation, possibly even just walk so less expense for them, pati 'yung oras na igugugol nila. Kesa magtrabaho sila sa malayong lugar, kung dito sila sa Greenhills magtrabaho, mas may oras sila para sa kanilang pamilya, mas may oras magpahinga, that will make them efficient employees (If you're going to hire residents of San Juan, it would be an advantage for both the employee and the employer because their travel to and from work will be shorter. They will spend less for transportation, possibly even just walk, including their travel time. If they're working here in Greenhills, they can spend more time with their families and more time to rest, hence, making them much efficient employees)," the local chief added.
PESO database
Another employment program spearheaded by the city government is the Public Employment and Skills Office (PESO) Skills Registration database where residents may register their skills and competencies for their job application procedure making it more efficient and streamlined.
"Ang layunin nito ay malaman namin ang inyong mga skills para kapag may mga negosyo na naghahanap ng mga empleyado ay ma-endorso namin kayo (The primary goal of this program is for us to know your skills so that we can endorse you to businesses that are looking for employees)," Zamora said.
"Alam na natin kada barangay kung sino ang accountant, sino ang engineer, sino ang pintor, sino ang mason, sino marunong magluto kaya kapag naghahanap ng empleyado ang mga establisyimentong nagbubukas, antimano meron na tayong mga pangalan na nabibigay sakanila (We will now know who in the barangay is an accountant, an engineer, a painter, a mason, a cook, hence, if a business owner is looking for employees for his/her business, we can immediately provide them with names of ideal applicants)," he added.
The mayor said residents who wish to register their skills and competencies with the PESO Skills Registration may proceed to their respective barangay offices and bring their government-issued ID and resume.
Those who cannot go to the designated schedule may proceed to PESO at the 2nd floor of the San Juan City Hall to submit their requirements.
San Juaneños may also register online using the link https://peso.sanjuancity.gov.ph/peso/apply.