TELECOM | Digital entrepreneurship training reaches Laguna MSMEs
More than 100 farmers, fisherfolk and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Laguna have completed digital entrepreneurship training under the Digital-PINAS initiative, a program that aims to help local businesses adopt digital tools and expand their online presence.
The training, led by the International Trade Centre (ITC), was conducted in the municipalities of Santa Cruz, Pila, Victoria and Los Baños. PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications joined the initiative as its telecommunications partner through the group’s #KonektedforLivelihoods program.
Participants attended workshops on smartphone photography and cybersecurity awareness to help them improve online product marketing while protecting themselves from online scams. PLDT and Smart also provided Smart Prepaid Pocket WiFi devices and load cards to support the training sessions.
“True digital transformation in the countryside isn’t about giving small business owners complicated software they don’t need. It is about taking the fear out of technology and showing a farmer or a local food vendor that a smartphone can be a powerful tool to protect their daily harvest, reach new buyers, and secure their family’s income right from their farms or kitchen tables. But without internet connectivity, bringing this digital transformation to the most in need is challenging. We are proud to count PLDT and Smart as our partner in supporting internet access during our trainings under Digital-PINAS and enhancing the connectivity of small businesses across the Philippines,” said Lorna Bondoc, lead ITC digital expert for Digital-PINAS.
Stephanie V. Orlino, assistant vice president and head of stakeholder engagement at PLDT and Smart, said the initiative reflects the company’s efforts to promote digital inclusion by equipping communities with practical digital skills.
“Our participation in Digital-PINAS reflects the PLDT Group’s broader commitment to inclusive growth, particularly for communities that have long faced barriers to entry in the digital economy. But our role goes beyond connectivity, because these sessions are meant to give the participants both the skills and the confidence to compete as digital entrepreneurs,” Orlino said.
The workshops included logo creation, smartphone photography and practical product presentation. In Santa Cruz, members of the Coalition Alliance of Farmers in Santa Cruz, Laguna learned how to establish an online presence for their products.
“From being ‘just farmers,’ our members can now become farmer-entrepreneurs,” said Queen Anino, secretary of the coalition.
Participants from the Pila Laguna Agriculture Cooperative, women-led enterprises in Victoria, and cooperative leaders in Los Baños also received hands-on training on product photography and digital marketing.
Digital-PINAS is funded by the UN Sustainable Development Goals Fund with contributions from the European Union. The program is implemented by the ITC, the International Labour Organization and the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with government agencies led by the Department of Information and Communications Technology.
