Doctor gets SME Elite Award

Thursday, August 25, 2011

TABUK, Kalinga - Dr. Jaime Almora, practicing surgeon and medical director of the Almora General Hospital (AGH)-Kalinga, bagged the first regional Small Medium Enterprise (SME) Star Elite Award in the Cordillera.

Almora brought home the honor during the regional SME caravan dubbed “Work-on-wheels” (WOW) last August 3 in Bangued, Abra.

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Noryn Bagano of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the regional SME Star Elite Search under the SME Star Program was launched to recognize the contributions of small business establishments to the economic growth of the nation.

The program is expanded from the traditional scope in the manufacturing and agri-business sectors to include the services sector with single proprietorship.

Government, through DTI, promotes development of SMEs considered as backbone of the country’s economy as it caters to low-capital enterprises.

Through the SME Star program, government finds ways of delivering needed support to strengthen capabilities of small businesses across the country.

Among the criteria in the search include contribution of the establishment to employment, growth in sales and investment, good corporate practices with social responsibility and community service, innovative product and processes, compliance to government requirements on employee’s benefits.

Bagano said the search was offered to at least 30 SMEs in Kalinga but only Almora made it with all the documentary requirements.

Almora managed the AGH more than 10 years ago. It started as a 25-bed secondary hospital but AGH rapidly grew to an 85-bed tertiary hospital equipped with advanced medical and diagnostic technology.

The search is up to the regional level only for now but Bagano hinted there may be a national level soon. (Larry Lopez)