National Trade Fair 2008 to feature “Best of the Islands”

Feb. 19, 2008 - PRLog -- Two hundred exhibitors will feature unique products from the Philippines’ 17 regions at the National Trade Fair 2008 on March 12-16 at the SM Megatrade Halls of the SM Megamall.  

National Trade Fair is the Philippines’ authoritative trade show for the best products throughout the archipelago, reflecting the unique resources and the people’s craftsmanship distinct in each region.

Over 900 new product designs will be showcased in NTF -- a result of the full-cycle assistance package provided by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), DTI Regional Operations Group, Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC), Product Design and Development Center of the Philippines (PDDCP), Bureau of Domestic Trade (BDT), and the Bureau of Small and Medium Enterprise Development (BSMED).

The fair serves as a government platform to boost the capabilities of Philippine enterprises. “The country’s economic activities are greatly influenced by our homegrown enterprises; their value-added contribution sustains the need for sources of livelihood, especially in the countryside,” said Trade Assistant Secretary Felicitas Agoncillo-Reyes, Executive Director of CITEM.

A showcase of products made from indigenous materials and local skills and talents from select towns of the Philippines will also be featured under the One Town One Product (OTOP) Philippines. OTOP is a priority program of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo that aims to promote entrepreneurship and create jobs in the countryside.

Another highlight this year is the Raw Materials Setting featuring semi-processed forms and new applications of ten raw materials with enormous potential: such as banana (bark, leaves, bud), coconut (coir, peat, bark, wood, fiber), corn (cob, husk, silk), fish scales, Manila palm (branch, twigs, fruits, fiber), recycled materials such as tin cans and plastic, sabutan leaves, water hyacinth (leaves and stems), tahong shells, and woven fibers made of abaca, buntal, and raffia.

Last year, the NTF assisted 194 enterprises, attracted 894 trade buyers, and generated 163.9 million pesos worth of sales.

According to Stella Lezama, manager of Orient Gifts, “I consider my participation in the NTF as the most fruitful of all the trade shows I participated so far.”  Orient Gifts closed a two-year contract with a bulk buyer she met in the NTF 2006, who required her 500 meters of woven abaca every month.  Since then, her business which started with a small number of weavers grew into three weaving centers employing 15 to 20 weavers each in order to meet her buyer’s monthly requirements.   “From then on, I always see to it that Orient Gifts is present in the NTF yearly,” she added.

NTF is expected to be an efficient vehicle to strengthen the capabilities of the homegrown enterprise sector.  According to Malacañang data, the MSME sector gives 99% value to the Philippine economy, and is one of the most efficient jobs creator. By 2010, it is seen that MSME will give jobs to six to 10 million individuals.

For information on the NTF, contact CITEM’s Special Projects Division at 8312201locals 261and 263, or email sprojects@citem.com.ph.

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