DTI equips IPs with entrepreneurial skills

ABUCAY, Bataan – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is currently conducting a two-day seminar to equip indigenous people coming from the upland village of Pastolan, Hermosa, Bataan with the entrepreneurial skills they need to start a small business.

“We are conducting this seminar dahil isa ito sa mga needs na na-identify during the briefing on the Bottom-Up-Budgeting (BUB) 2015 project implementation,” said Ms. Cindy Jaime, Trade and Industry Development Specialist of DTI-Bataan.

According to Ms. Jaime, this is part of the BUB Fund Project that was downloaded to the Municipality of Hermosa which was divided into three projects namely: Local Regional Economic Development, Yaman-Pinoy Program and the Rural Micro-Enterprise Promotion Program (RUMEPP) and that this training being conducted is part of the RUMEPP category.

During the first day of the seminar, topics discussed were: How to Start a Small Business by Ms. Jaime and matters about bookkeeping were handled by Ms. Olivia Ann Siccion, BPSU-Main Campus Instructor for Master in Business Administration. Topics aligned with costing and pricing were also tackled on the second day.

“Ang purpose ng seminar na ito ay para mabigyan ng skills yung mga participants, para maihanda sila to become entrepreneurs, malaman nila yung mga business opportunities and ma-inform sila on how to start a small business kasi kelangan talagang maging knowledgeable sila. Ine-equip din namin sila kung paano ang proper costing and pricing na hindi lalagpas sa standard price para makapag-compete sila sa market,” explained Ms. Jaime.

She also disclosed that the participants who were chosen by the Municipal Social Welfare Development Office (MSWDO) of Hermosa will be given P10, 000 cash each after completing the said seminar, under the Sustainable Livelihood Program of the MSWDO.

“Ang pondo nito ay galing sa Modified Conditional Cash Transfer para sa kabuhayan ng mga IPs. So kami yung mag-hahandle sa kanila, bibigyan namin sila ng P10,000.00 bawat isa pero kailangan muna nilang makumpleto ang seminar na ito dahil isa kasi sa mga requirements ay magkaroon sila ng entrepreneurial and managerial trainings,” said Mr. Ricky Gacayan, Project Development Officer of the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Region III.

Included in the training kits made available to the attendees were general journals, calculators and pens. Around sixty indigenous people participated in the two-day activity.