USAID ₱1B Project Targets MSME Digital Transformation

USAID has launched a digitalization program that targets to digitally transform over 30,000 small micro and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in five years.

US Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson announced the ₱1 billion funding last January 11, 2023, during the launch of the USAID Strengthening Private Enterprise for the Digital Economy (SPEED).

Ambassador Carlson has stated that the “SPEED signals the US government’s strong commitment to supporting the Philippine government’s vision of a digital Philippines,”

This new USAID SPEED project will provide MSMEs in the Philippines to participate in the e-commerce ecosystem of the country. In the Philippines, e-commerce sales are predicted to hit over $22.95 billion in 2023 and $25 billion in 2025.

“Our goal is to transform that last at least 30,000 SMEs across the country, their operational efficiency, productivity and sales, and by expanding their opportunities to grow into more mature and bigger enterprises,” mentioned Ambassador Carlson.

“We plan to create a robust digital ecosystem, where digital payments and logistics networks are pervasive and interoperable, allowing enterprises and customers nationwide to conduct seamless e-commerce transactions.”

With the SPEED project, USAID will collaborate with the Philippine government and private sector partners, which include technology innovators and experts to establish an interoperable and efficient logistics and digital ecosystem.

SPEED will aid DTI to reach its target of onboarding SMEs onto several digital platforms. Aside from this, USAID will collaborate with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to hit their goal of reaching 50% e-payment transactions in 2023.

Source: Manila Bulletin