Economist Cielito Habito underscored the importance of intensifying small and medium enterprise promotion and development to achieve jobs-creating growth at the Business and Economic Prospects for 2007 forum at Santuario de la Salle in Bacolod City Friday.

Habito said he believes the country should not rely on foreign investments to create jobs, but rather on SMEs.

He said the passion for entrepreneurship should be instilled in Filipinos and the country should help people who will create jobs or create wealth.

Habito, who heads the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development, said entrepreneurship should be taught starting in basic education, and not only in college, to instill the entrepreneurial mindset among Filipinos.

Micro enterprises are companies with up to P3 million in total assets; small, P3 million to P5 million; and medium, P15 million to P100 million.

In the Philippines, micro, small and medium enterprises account for 806,921 or 99.7 percent of the total 809,271 establishments. Small and medium firms number 63,201 or 7.8 percent while micro enterprises make up 743,720 or 91.9 percent of the total.

He, however, said that the promotion and development of SMEs is suffering a drawback because of lack of financing, but he believes banks are already beginning to see such need.

Another setback, he said, is cultural problem wherein entrepreneurs themselves refuse to team up with each to respond to volume demands.

There are a lot of things we can do to invigorate the SME sector, Habito added.

The forum, organized by the Institute for Negros Development of the University of St. La Salle, was moderated by IND chairman Daniel Lacson. Also in the panel were Sugar Regulatory Administration chief James Ledesma and Presidential Adviser for Western Visayas Rafael Coscolluela.

The participants included at least 10 local business leaders representing 15 different sectors.*NLG

back to top