12 March 2021, Cagayan de Oro City—Local Economic and Investment Promotions Officer (LEIPO) Eileen San Juan, is set to share how the Cagayan de Oro Trade and Investment Promotions Center (Oro-TIPC) has been helping women entrepreneurs and other micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) ride out the pandemic by hitching onto the booming digital economy.

The online forum titled “Pinaypreneurs Rise to the Digital Challenge,” was organized by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Strengthening Urban Resilience for Growth with Equity (SURGE) Project, under the USAID SURGE Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (WGDP) Initiative in collaboration with Globe myBusiness.

Completing the all-female circle for this fireside Q&A are Cathy Torremocha, City Administrator of Tagbilaran; Adelyn Yucamco, of the General Santos City Economic Management and Cooperative Development Office; Willem Ma, CEO of Masuki, the oldest and most famous noodle shop in Binondo, Manila’s Chinatown; and Roberta Abada-Estacion, Managing Director of Harem, Inc., a hair management salon.

LEIPO San Juan is set to feature Oro-TIPC’s initiatives to help MSMEs pivot, especially the Ginamâ Entrepreneurial Development Center for Women, which was launched last year with the support of USAID SURGE and the W-GDP, which capacitates women in business to compete, access financing, engage in e-Commerce and digital marketing, participate in trade fairs, and ultimately export.

Ginamâ, first opened last 15 June 2019, the 49th anniversary of Cagayan de Oro’s charter, as a business development and marketing center for Cagayan de Oro’s and Region 10’s MSMEs.

It is recognized by the Department of Trade and Industry as a One-Town-One-Product Philippines Hub (OTOP.PH), and is operated by a woman-led private sector partner.

Ginamâ Entrepreneurial Development Center for Women just launched its second round of workshops for MSMEs in Business Continuity and Recovery, Business Plan Preparation—two (2) prerequisites for credit access, Marketing through Social Media, eCommerce Websites and Digital Marketing, and Applying for Loans.

A small business information and research portal is currently being developed to serve as a repository of the knowledge materials from these workshops for MSMEs to access.