DBP's P4-B lending program available to returning OFWs

The Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has set aside P4 billion for projects that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) can avail themselves of should they opt to stay in the country for good.

Corazon Conde, DBP’s senior vice-president for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) said an agreement had been signed with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) under the “One Town, One Product" program that would provide loan access to returning OFWs interested in putting up livelihood or small businesses.

“We have just launched this project- the One Town, One Product program -- and [this] will cover returning OFWs, migrants and their families to avail of the financing," Conde told newsmen.

She said P2 billion has been allotted to OTOP and the other P2 billion will be for Roll-on Roll-off truckers and logistics providers 2GO with whom the bank forged a partnership agreement on Friday.

Under the DTI partnership, Conde said OFWs wanting to avail themselves of the program would have to seek DTI’s endorsement to qualify for the financial assistance.

“DTI really is the one handling this [project] and once they secured the endorsement, they will forward this to us because DTI is the one determining how much fund should be allocated per region," the DBP official explained.

For the 2GO-RoRo truckers loan program, two former OFWs have already availed themselves of an assistance amounting to P164 million.

The DBP loan program provides RoRo truckers the loan that can cover 90 percent of the truck purchase cost with a fixed interest rate of 8.5 percent yearly to be paid within five years.

“Partnering with Aboitiz-2GO, we are hitting two birds in one stone," Conde said.

Caelp Paredes, owner of Caelp Trucking Services and one of the three beneficiaries of the DBP loan package, said he started his trucking business in 2005 with an initial capital of P600,000.

Paredes said that with the DBP loan guaranteed by 2GO, he was able to secure a P30 million loan from DBP which he used to purchase 30 new trucks.

Paredes worked as operations manager of a company in Riyadh Saudi Arabia for 23 years and was earning $1,500 monthly.

“The money I earned from abroad was the money I used to put up this business since I have knowledge in the transport industry," he said.

Like Paredes, seaman Marvin Malabanan, another beneficiary of the DBP loan program, said he started with two trucks and an initial investment of P500,000 in 2004.

From two trucks, Malabanan, owner of Mardy Marketing Trucking Services (MMTS), now has a total of 140 trucks, with P83 million funds obtained from DBP loans.

Mariz Murallos, business development supervisor of 2GO, said the RoRo industry is growing by 20 percent in terms of volume annually and expected to grow further by 10 percent in 2008. At present, 2GO has 22 trucker affiliates.

The firm 2Go is a subsidiary of Aboitiz Transport System [ATS] Corp. It is in the process of arranging the second batch of truckers to avail of the loan and hopes that another 200 trucks will be added to the RoRo fleet. - Marie Neri, GMANews.TV

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