Research Utilization

Opportunities for women with disabilities in Camarines Norte tackled in Talakayan

Rosalita B. Manlangit

DAET, Camarines Norte, April 6 (PIA) -- “I am happy because I was informed that there are agencies of government that can provide livelihood to Persons with Disabilities (PWDs)” Ferda S. Abando, President of Pederasyon ng may Kapansanan sa bayan ng Daet (PEKADA).

This was during the Talakayan sa PIA On Air/Kapihan over DWCN-Radyo Pilipinas held March 26 coinciding the 14^th Women with Disability Day with the theme “#ProgresstoSucess: Babaeng May Kapansanan sa Pagbabago Manguna at Manindigan Ka”.

Abando said that they have just organized their group as federation recently and planned to have a project but in need of capital to pursue.

Jane Rolda, provincial head of the Department of Labor and Employment urged her to visit her office to assist on the livelihood that their group wanted to engage.

She said that the PWDs is one of the sectors that the DOLE serve aside from self-employed, farmers, fisherfolks, women, youth, displaced workers, IPs, parents of child laborers, rebel returnes and those victims of armed conflicts except government employees and 4Ps beneficiaries.

Rolda discussed that their DOLE Kabuhayan group project can have a grant ranging from P250 thousand to P1 million depending on the number of members of the association.

She said that for individual they have the Nego Kart or Negosyo sa Kariton with P20,000 per capita and the Starter Kit for those individual who have skills like cosmetology, food processing, massage therapist, electrician and among others also worth P20 thousand as grant.

Tobias M. Obrero Jr. of the Technical Education Skills and Development Authority said that they have four training modalities the school-based, center-based, enterprized-based and community-based.

These are being done with TESDA’s infrastructure in place in administered schools, training centers, enterprise-based training through DTS/apprenticeship and community-based training in convergence with the LGU’s.

He said that they also provide certification or the National Certificate (NC) after the training skills and or assessment.

Obrero said that they have also several scholarships that can be availed through individual or group but with partner or maybe through community based.

He added that they can avail of the program through walk-in, barangay referral and on-line.

Acelita E. Padolina, focal for Senior Citizen/GAD of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources here on the other hand said that they will spearhead a training on food processing on June with Senior Citizen and PWDs as participants in partnership with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

She said that they also invite PWDs in their regular orientation seminar on environment protection. (RBM-PIA5/Camarines Norte)

Cauayan City eyes to be the S&T hub of Cagayan Valley

Susan G. De Leon

CAUAYAN CITY, Isabela, April 6 (PIA) -- Aside from being called a ‘Smart City’, Cauayan is also eyeing to be the Science and Technology Hub of Cagayan Valley for being supportive of the various programs and projects of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

Sancho Mabborang, DOST regional director, said Cauayan City is home to various DOST-assisted projects such as the first ‘Charm station’ in the region for eBikes and eTrikes, made commercially viable by DOST’s funding support.

Mabborang said there are also established Food Innovation Center and Satellite Standard Testing Laboratory here, aside from the construction of the Business Intelligence Research and Development Center in the city.

“The full support of the city government, including the academe, in the implementation of various DOST-assisted programs and projects are considerations why we are eyeing Cauayan City as Science and Technology hub in the region,” Mabborang said.

Dr. Ricmar Aquino, Isabela State Univerity president, assured his support to the DOST by producing human resources that will augment the future labor force in science and technology related jobs.

“Our ISU-Cauayan City campus is an institution that trains and produces the needed manpower in various science and technology-related employment,” Aquino said. (ALM/MGE – PIA-2/Isabela)

DTI-DOST TO EXPAND MSME MARKETING CAPABILITIES THROUGH ONESTORE.PH

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will tie up with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) to help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) expand their market and reach clients online with the OneSTore.ph.

“MSMEs are the backbone of the Philippine economy. And as part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s whole-of-government approach to assist MSMEs, we are teaming up with DOST to impact the lives of more Filipino entrepreneurs,” said DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez.

The OneSTore.ph is a first government e-commerce platform (Business–to-Customer and Business-to-Business platform) dedicated to marketing high-quality Filipino products of MSMEs through the worldwide web by “bringing quality products at Filipino doorsteps.”

This comes as DTI intensifies marketing capabilities of MSMEs to help them reach the mainstream market.

Under the OneSTore.ph agreement, DTI will Promote the oneSTore.ph to MSMEs through Negosyo Centers as a platform where they can market their products on-line.

At the same time, DTI will make Negosyo Centers accessible to clients of DOST and allow clients to display and dispatch their products with its payment and logistic partners in One Town One Product (OTOP) Philippines HubStores, subject to availability of space and to DTI priorities and promote oneSTore and provide signage for the spaces provided for oneSTore.ph and oneSTore hub in every OTOP Store identified as co-branded hub, among others.

The One Town, One Product (OTOP) Philippines is DTI’s collaborative program with national government agencies and local government units as a customized intervention to level up the products of various localities and drive inclusive local economic growth.

DOST, on the other hand, will develop and maintain oneSTore.ph where its accredited Regional Hubs and MSMEs may sell products and services to its clients and engage with payment and logistics partners and provide better oneSTore.ph services to its accredited Regional Hubs, MSMEs and its partner agencies.

DOST will also Provide priority to jointly identified OTOP products for product development initiatives including improvements in packaging and labeling, subsidy or discounts in testing fees, equipment support such as the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP), and strengthen research and development efforts

DTI, DOST team up to expand MSME market reach online

PIA 10

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, April 6 (PIA) -- The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) are teaming up to help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) expand their market reach online through the OneSTore.ph platform.

The OneSTore.ph is the first government e-commerce platform dedicated to marketing high-quality Filipino products of MSMEs through the worldwide web by “bringing quality products to Filipino doorsteps."

Under the OneSTore.ph agreement, DTI will promote the oneSTore.ph to MSMEs through Negosyo Centers as a platform where they can market their products online.

DTI will also make Negosyo Centers accessible to clients of DOST and allow clients to display and dispatch their products with its payment and logistic partners in the One Town One Product (OTOP) Philippines HubStores.

OTOP Philippines is DTI’s collaborative program with national government agencies and local government units as a customized intervention to level up the products of various localities and drive inclusive local economic growth.

DOST will also provide priority to jointly identified OTOP products for product development initiatives including improvements in packaging and labeling, subsidy or discounts in testing fees, equipment support such as the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program, and strengthen research and development efforts. (DTI-10/PIA-10)

Testing labs support forest-based, related industries

Rizalina K. Arara l

The country’s furniture, pulp and paper, and plywood industries have found a partner in their bid to make it in the world market: the FTL or FPRDI Testing Laboratories of the Department of Science and Technology’s Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI).

Certified by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), through the Philippine Accreditation Bureau (PAB), three laboratories—one each for furniture, pulp and paper, and plywood—conducted 1,394 tests for 515 customers last year, and earned an income of about P4.07 million.

According to the FTLs’ Quality Manager Adela S. Torres, “Having their products tested by an ISO-certified lab ensures our clients to get consistently valid results, and gives them the credibility they need to access new markets overseas, maintains their presence in old markets, and meets the demands of certain government agencies.”

Customers who had their products assessed by an ISO-certified lab no longer need to have them retested since the standards used by the facilities are globally recognized. This saves time and money for exporters.

“One of the the FTLs’ long time clients is the government’s Department of Budget and Management’s Procurement Service [DBM-PS],” Torres said. “ The DBM-PS requires all its suppliers to submit samples of their paper products to DOST-FPRDI. Only companies that pass the tests will qualify for public bidding. This centralized and direct purchase by the PS saves the government about 30 percent in the cost of its paper supplies.”

For furniture products, on the other hand, only firms which meet the FTL’s evaluation can take part in the public bidding process of the Department of Education.

The FTLs are ran under the DOST’s OneLab project, a platform which gives broader and more efficient public access to all of the Department’s testing services. The DOST-FPRDI also offers wood identification, chemical, physical and mechanical, and bio-energy testing services for forest-based and related products and is currently working for the eventual ISO-accreditation of these.