Tawi-Tawi, BARMM — The SWC Sama Producers Cooperative (SSPC) in Bongao received worth Php 700,000 processing equipment on June 19, 2022, as part of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) intervention support for micro, small, and medium enterprises.

Minister Aida Silongan led the turn-over of the upgraded production site for SSPC.

In a statement, Minister Silongan encouraged the said cooperative to maximize processing equipment to produce more profit.

“I-maximize ninyo ang pag gamit sa processing equipment, kung mayroon pa kayong naiisip na produkto maliban sa native delicacies ay inyong gawin upang magkaroon pa ng mas malaking kita.” Minister said.

[Maximize the use of processing equipment, if you intend to invest in other food products aside from native delicacies, do it to get a higher profit.]

She was also expecting from the cooperative that their products would be seen in markets or pasalubong centers.

“Inaasahan namin na ang inyong native delicacies ay mabibili na sa mga pasalubong centers once madevelop, mapackage ng maayos, magkaroon ng labelling ang inyong produkto through our MSMEs-UP Program.” Minister added.

[We expect your native delicacies to be marketed in the pasalubong center once developed, appropriately packaged, product labelled through our MSMEs-UP Program.]

The Micro, Small, Medium Enterprises – Upgrading Program (MSMEs-UP) supports cooperatives in the community by upgrading their production lines, training them on Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP), Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP), and Halal Awareness, upgrade their production site and provide them with processing equipment. It is to get high profit and uplift the lives of cooperative members.

Meanwhile, Bangsamoro Director-General Abdulrakman Asim said that the ministry’s support does not end with the turn-over ceremony of technology intervention. He motivated the cooperative to operationalize all the processing equipment to maximize profit.

“Hindi dito nagtatapos ang tulong ng MOST, mayroon pang mga technology assistance na ibibigay sa inyo. Ini-encourage naming kayo na i-maximize ang gamit ng mga processing equipment at ma-operationalize ng inyong organisasyon.” BDG said.

[The support of MOST doesn’t end here. We will provide more technical assistance. We encourage you to maximize the use of processing equipment and would be operationalized by your organization.]

Moreover, the cooperative has thanked the ministry for providing them with processing equipment. The cooperative expresses gratitude to the ministry through an acceptance message given by Coop President Sitti Rahsam Mohammad.

“Ito ay isang malaking oportunidad para sa aming mga kababaihang Muslim. Kami po ay nangangako na patuloy po ang aming pasasalamat sa pamahalaan ng BARMM lalong lalo na sa MOST sa mga processing equipment at na-upgrade ang aming  production site.” Sitti Rahsam said.

[This is an ample opportunity for us Muslim women. We promise that we will be thankful to the BARMM government, especially MOST, for the processing equipment and upgrading our production site.]

The Micro, Small, Medium Enterprises – Upgrading Program (MSMEs-UP) is one of the Technology Transfer and Commercialization programs to assist micro, small, and medium enterprises to adopt technological innovation for production improvement and competitiveness. This Program addresses the technical problem and improves the productivity and efficiency of cooperatives.

[AOM-IO]