(MANILA BULLETIN)


Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. LRay Villafuerte is trumpeting the possible enactment of a measure that would make local products more competitive in the international market and in turn boost the Philippine economy. Villafuerte said that one of the measures ratified by the House of Representatives and the Senate before they adjourned sine die last May 30 was the bill institutionalizing the nearly decade-old “One Town, One Product (OTOP)” initiative of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). According to the former House deputy speaker, Congress' approval of the OTOP bill was “timely as the President had just approved the DTI-drafted PEDP amid a weakening export sector resulting from a looming recession in the US (United States) and a global economic slowdown". PEDP stands for Philippine Export Development Plan 2023-2028. According to Malacañang, the program aims to to double the country’s export level from $126.8 billion this year to $240.5 billion in 2028. Now ratified by the two legislative chambers, the measure only needs President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s signature for it to become a law. “The OTOP Bill, in bolstering the six-year PEDP of the Marcos administration, will lead to a more inclusive growth as its intervention programs are meant to energize local entrepreneurs and industries, especially those in the countryside, and create more jobs and livelihood opportunities for rural folk," Villafuerte said. "[The] all-out effort to upgrade the quality of our local goods and aggressively promote them in international markets is crucial to making our merchandise exports more competitive abroad and more resilient in the face of challenges, such as the currently weak demand abroad as a result of a looming US recession and a global downturn," he added. The measure will institutionalize the DTI’s OTOP Philippines program to serve as the government's stimulus package for the promotion of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the countryside through the use of indigenous raw materials and the utilization of local skills and talents. Villafuerte said the OTOP Bill seeks to boost MSMEs with viable products to sell by providing them with a package of assistance for developing new and innovative products with significant improvement in the areas of quality, product development, design, packaging, standards compliance, marketability, production capability and brand development. He said the bill also aims to provide assistance in standards and market compliance, so entrepreneurs can comply with the requirements of DTI-Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOP). Monitoring and evaluation schemes will be implemented to ensure that the products under the OTOP Philippines line conform to these standards. Moreover, Villafuerte said, the bill will provide market access and promotion assistance to MSME-beneficiaries across different platforms, including multimedia advocacy campaigns, trade fairs and creation of OTOP Philippines Hubs. He said the OTOP Philippines program shall cover material products and skills-based services known to an area or locality.