“The Philippine economy’s growth cannot be only with big business growing; it will grow when we see our micro become small, the small become medium, and the medium become large companies,” said Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion as he addressed the thousands of MSMEs gathered last July 13 at the Music Hall of SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City for the 2024 National MSME Summit.

Concepcion joined Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual, DTI USec. for MSME Development Group Cris Roque, DICT Usec Jocelle Batapa Sigue, along with SM’s Tessie Sy Coson, Angkas CEO George Royeca, PCCI President Nina Mangio, SB Corp. President Robert Bastillo, Esquire Financing CEO Raj Uttamchandani, and other top executives in the day-long event.

“Private sector can provide great access to MSMEs because they have the spaces where the people tend to go. Big business’s role as successful entrepreneurs themselves is to help MSMEs uplift their lives,” Concepcion said. He pointed out how companies like SM provide the venue for events such as the MSME Summit. During the event, attendees were also given insights by lending platforms into how to better access financing, as well as how to use social media platforms like TikTok Shop’s Shoppertainment Format to promote their businesses by seamlessly integrating content and commerce.

Private sector, however, cannot do it alone. “The partnership between the DTI and Go Negosyo has achieved more success in helping our MSMEs,” Concepcion said.

During the event, Sec. Pascual presented several initiatives which embody the DTI’s commitment to empowering Philippine MSMEs that promise to boost productivity and reach new markets. Among them is training MSMEs in social media platforms, e-commerce marketplaces, the OTOP Law which institutionalizes MSME development efforts and provides it a legal framework, a national AI strategy roadmap which can help MSMEs stay competitive, the enhancement of e-governance systems to help LGUs speed up ease of doing business, and a new B2B platform which will make it easier for MSMEs to produce intermediate products that can be integrated into the supply chain of larger companies.

The event also saw over half a million pesos in “puhunang pang-negosyo” cash and startup packages given away by Go Negosyo, as well as Negosyo packages worth thousands from CDO, Selecta, Kettle Korn, IFern, Kimsdiary, and Viber. Lucky attendees also went home with prizes from Uratex, Wilcon Depot, Sunlife, DoubleDragon – Hotel 101, Shopee, Lazada, and Globe Business. “These startup and negosyo bundles emphasize the need for our MSMEs to have access to capital, a crucial element that every business – big or small – needs in order to succeed,” Concepcion said earlier.

The National MSME Summit also saw the awarding of the 2024 Go Negosyo Most Inspiring Microentrepreneurs Awards to ten microentrepreneurs. Hosting the event were entrepreneur RJ Ledesma and Chal Lontoc, with Isabelle Daza participating in a celebrity chat.

The summit, which is presented by the MSME Development (MSMED) Council and Go Negosyo, with the support of the Department of Trade and Industry, is the culminating event of the MSME Development Week celebrations.