ILIGAN CITY, May 15 (PIA)--The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Lanao del Norte Provincial Office encouraged micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the province and Iligan City who wish to restart or strengthen their business operations amid the pandemic to avail of the Bayanihan lending program.

During Friday's episode of Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber, Evelyn Geronimo, DTI's Junior Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) Provincial Coordinator, said MSMEs can tap loans under the Bayanihan COVID-19 Assistance to Restart Enterprises (CARES) program being implemented by DTI's financing arm, the Small Business (SB) Corporation.

Geronimo said the loanable amount will vary depending on the size and assets of the MSMEs with a minimum amount of P10,000 and a maximum amount of P3,00,000.

She emphasized that loans from the Bayanihan CARES Program are interest-free, collateral-free, and available for MSMEs that have been in operation for at least one year.

According to her, the loan application was also made online to ensure that more businesses can avail of the service given the ongoing pandemic.

"Naay verifier nga motan-aw sa kada application hangtud sa processing sa loan, online pud ang signing, dili na kailangan moadto sa opisina," she further said.

[There is a verifier that looks at each application until the loan processing, the signing is also online, there is no need to go to the office.]

Apart from the loan application and evaluation, loan releases are also done online.

Interested business owners may submit their loan requests and documentation requirements through www.bayanihancares.ph.

Geronimo said documents required include BIR-filed financial statement, government-issued ID, and bank account or electronic money account such as G-Cash.

For those with no BIR-filed financial statement, they are required to submit barangay certification or barangay business permit, government-issued ID, bank account or electronic money account, and photos and videos showing the asset of the business,

A total of 237 loan applications have been approved in Iligan City and Lanao del Norte as of May 2021 with a cumulative amount of P21.3 million.

"Dili mabalaka ang mga negosyante nga karon pa nakabalo tungod kay dako pa ang budget nga nabilin sa ato diri sa Lanao. Naa tay P100 million nga budget, so naa pa tay P79 million nga pwede ipahulam," assured Geronimo.

[Entrepreneurs who just learned about this program need not worry because we still have a large budget left here in Lanao. We have a budget of P100 million, so we still have P79 million to lend.] (APB/PIA-ICIC)