KORONADAL CITY, SOUTH COTABATO—A skills training on Protective Personal Equipment (PPE) Production was conducted by the Department of Trade and Industry 12 (DTI-12) through its Cotabato Satellite Office to capacitate the local sewers of Cotabato City.  

Participants to the one-day skills training on August 27, 2020 are members of the Moving Forward for Quality Life Association, operator of DTI’s Shared Service Facility (SSF) on T-shirt Manufacturing, were trained in producing suits and face masks.  

The training is a response of DTI-12 to the call of DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez to encourage local manufacturers to re-purpose some of their manufacturing capacity into producing PPEs and masks in order to address the need for local producers who will supply the needs of healthcare workers.  

It was also noted in a meeting of Sec. Lopez with some officials of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases last August 19, he mentioned that when the COVID-19 started in February, the Philippines had no local manufacturer of PPE.  

“With the covid outbreak, the demand for PPE is greatly increased for everyday use of healthcare personnel. As such, DTI, being one of the line agencies who is mandated to provide service to help in providing PPEs through our SSF cooperators, we have thought of conducting training to this effect to assure that production of PPEs by our SSF Cooperators are sown according to the desired standard,” said Ma. Theresa T. Chua, the OIC Division Chief of DTI-12 CSO.  

“We continue to support local micro, small and medium enterprises especially here in Cotabato City as they adjust to the ‘new normal’ and make them more resilient by providing alternative business ventures,” added Chua. 

Supporting the initiative is the Local Government Unit of Cotabato City through its Office of the City Mayor-Investment Promotion Division. ♦ 

Date of Release: 1 September 2020