Koronadal City, South Cotabato – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Region 12 through its Sarangani Provincial Office and the Negosyo Center Malapatan joined the Department of Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) province-wide “Serbisyo Caravan para sa Sarangan” at Barangay Sapu Masla, Malapatan in Sarangani.

Sapu Masla is one of the four barangays with Kihan, Kinam, and Upper Suyan as among the identified conflict-affected barangays under the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

The Serbisyo Caravan brings the services of the government to the barangay under the NTF-ELCAC to foster peace and development through the implementation of various socioeconomic interventions.

DTI-12 OIC Regional Director Flora P. Gabunales said that the participation of DTI the caravan is anchored on the priority of the agency to bring closer the business development services to budding entrepreneurs, especially in the countryside.

“We intensify our efforts to bring the services of DTI to far-flung barangays to encourage the people to engage in doing business. By doing so, we help foster livelihood opportunities, especially for the unemployed and those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Gabunales.

Other government agencies present during the caravan were the DILG, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Social Security System (SSS), Phil-Health, PAG-IBIG Fund, Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPAG), and the Local Government Unit of Malapatan.

The DTI-Negosyo Center caters to business-related inquiries of the attending participants. The services offered were business name registrations, business consultancies, business advisories, loan and financing opportunities, Livelihood Seeding Program Inquiries, and the conduct of technical and skills training.

Approximately 500 participants joined the said caravan. ♦

Date of Release: 22 August 2022