Guico Gung-ho to Spike Jobs in P'sinan

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

PASAY CITY – The administration of Pangasinan Governor Ramon V. Guico III has been aggressively sending entrepreneurs and craftsmen to expo hubs to raise their stocks and thus generate employment among its constituents through micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME).

Representatives from Pangasinan at the Manila FAME held  at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. It is lead by Dr Grace Guico, Founding President of Project Abound and Provincial Administrator Ely Patague.

In October 19 to 21, 2023, Governor Guico sent 10 of the province’s “who’s who” of the MSME for the trade show’s Manila FAME at the Manila Peninsula in Metro Manila.

In May 2023, he sent Pangasinan businessmen to join the International Food Expo (IFEX) held at the World Trade Center (WTC) here.

In October 17-19, 2024, the provincial government sent 11 entrepreneurs and artisans to attend the Manila FAME at the WTC to showcase their products for the local and foreign investors there.

The Guico Administration even leased the huge spruce up booth there for almost P1 million to accommodate for free the representatives from Pangasinan. The booth was declared the Best Booth Design among the 350 enterprises that joined from the various parts of the country.

“Marami kasing magagandang produkto ang Pangasinan. Kulang lang ng exposure. Ang mga tao we have all the talents and the skills. Kaya kung wala silang basis wala silang benchmark. Kaya I wanted them to come over dito sa exibit para makita nila gaano kaganda iyong products,” said by Dr. Grace Guico, the mother of the governor, who was the Founding President of Project Abound.

MSMEs employ the country’s abundant raw materials into functional and aesthetic pieces.

They comprised 99.5 percent of all registered business establishments in the Philippines in 2019. They generate 62.4 percent of the country's total employment, contribute 36 percent of gross value added, and account for 25 percent of total exports, according to the Socioeconomic Research Portal for the Philippines.

Philippines First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos visits the Pangasinan booth while she buys a steel lampshade there.

The Department of Trade and Industry categorizes MSMEs based on their asset size and number of employees. It is micro if they have PHP 3,000,000 or less in assets and one to nine employees, small enterprises if they have PHP 3,000,001 to PHP 15,000,000 in assets and 10 to 99 employees, and medium enterprises if they have PHP 15,000,001 to PHP 100,000,000 in assets and 100 to 199 employees. Large enterprises have over PHP 100,000,001 or more in assets and 200 or more employees.

Although they are considered the backbone of the economy, MSMEs do not appear to survive once they engage in foreign trade. Bautista and Manzano (2018) found that only six in every ten exporting Philippine MSMEs survive after their first year of operation. This figure drops to less than four in every ten by the end of their fourth year.

Majority of the MSMEs, according to the DTI, can be found in the National Capital Region (NCR) with 204,844 (18.54%) business establishments, Region 4-A (CALABARZON) with 163,710 (14.81%), Region 3 (Central Luzon) with 139,912 (12.66%), Region 7 (Central Visayas) with 79,689 (7.21%), and Region 6 (Western Visayas) with 75,553 (6.84%). These top five (5) locations accounted for about 60.06% of the country’s total number of MSME establishments. The regional concentration of MSMEs is largely associated with economic activity and population size.

“Oppurtunity para sa ating MSME para palakasin pa ang kanilang pagawa ng mga produkto na maipagmalaki natin sa buong Pilipinas at buong mundo. Nakikita naman natin na world class talaga,” Provincial Administrator Ely Patague told reporters that milled around him at the Pangasinan’s booth here.

The country’s First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos visited the booth and bought a steel lampshade there.

President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. visited the trade expo the following day.