GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 4 Aug) – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Region 12 is targeting to attract more major investments in the region through a newly-launched book that features the area’s top business opportunities.
Ibrahim Guiamadel, DTI Region 12 director, said Monday the book mainly highlights potential business and investment projects or ventures in thriving industries within the region’s four provinces and five cities.
“It’s a compilation of business opportunities that have ready markets in Region 12,” the official said.
Guiamadel said they launched the book, which is entitled “Soccsksargen Compendium of Project Briefs,” in a recent trade gathering here.
He said the publication is a project of the DTI-12’s National Economic Research and Business Assistance Center (NERBAC).
It was prepared by private institutions, experts from Mindanao State University campus here and personnel from the DTI regional and provincial offices.
“These business opportunities are presented in project brief form to give start-up and existing businessmen a bird’s eye-view of various business opportunities in the region,” Guiamadel said.
He said the book, which has 230 featured project briefs, details the cost or investment requirements, projected sales and income as well as other information that would “help them (prospective investors) decide which business to venture into.
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Guiamadel said the featured projects involve the region’s existing and up-and-coming industries, specifically agriculture (fresh and processed); aqua-marine (fresh and processed); garments/textile; creative; energy/green; handicrafts; industrial products; Information and Communication Technology/Business Process Outsourcing (ICT/BPO); printing and packaging/advertising; and tourism support.
The prospective projects include banana cardava production, bamboo furniture making, oil palm plantation, milkfish production, apron making, comic detailing, composting facility and compost production using vermiculture, bleaching powder manufacturing, ICT/BPO operations, water bottle manufacturing, beach resort development and handloom weaving, he said.
Guiamadel said the project briefs were identified through agency’s Supply Management through Investments for Large Enterprises (SMILE) program, a flagship initiative that aims to link the region’s small and medium entrepreneurs with large companies and markets.
He said the process was done through a series of investment dialogues that facilitated the identification of supply and service needs of large companies.
DTI-NERBAC 12 then links up the large companies to existing and potential entrepreneurs in the region who may be able supply their requirements, he said.
“This, in effect, will help create new entrepreneurs and enterprises, expand existing businesses while creating new ones, as well as help generate employment for the community,” he added.