DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 27 November) — Various food and non-food products produced by the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) here will be featured at the first-ever “Madayaw! The Davao Region Trade Fair” at the Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong City on December 4 to 7, according to an official of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Davao.
During the “Wednesdays Media Forum at Habi at Kape,” Arriel Nengasca, chief of the Business Development and Promotion Division of the DTI-Davao Region, said that 27 MSMEs would participate in the trade fair aimed at helping homegrown businesses expand their market to the capital.
He said the selected MSMEs represent the “best of the best” of Davao, featuring agricultural products such as cacao, coconut, coffee, durian, pomelo, mangosteen, and other tropical fruits, along with handicrafts and the region’s renowned South Sea pearls.
Among the participating MSMEs are the world-famous Malagos Chocolates and Cheeses, Ayana’s Siling Kinamayo, House of Musa, Yvette’s Bags and Beads, and Kaar Ceramics Manufacturing.
“We are bringing in the best of Davao Region’s products — food and non-food — for the people in Manila and nearby provinces to experience quality products,” Nengasca said.
He said the agency targets ₱5 million in sales and hopes that the business-to-business (B2B) matching session will result in agreements between the exhibitors and prospective buyers.
A total of 25 foreign investors have confirmed participation in the B2B matching, according to Nengasca.
“They (MSMEs) already have a steady market locally here in Davao, but we want to bring them to Manila for the institutional buyers to see their products. There are several shops in Manila. We can provide them with beans for coffee shops in Manila, as well as our chocolates,” he said.
Another goal of the fair is to penetrate the export market, he said, as he hopes local exhibitors will secure buyers to bring their products abroad, particularly to the United States, Singapore, and Japan.
He said the cost of bringing their products to Manila, along with their capacity to meet the volume requirements of prospective buyers, remains a challenge for local MSMEs.
“In terms of production, our MSMEs are not yet capable of supplying in bulk. We realized this during international fairs,” he said. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
