Incentives for innovations, startups

(Photo from Unsplash)
(Photo from Unsplash)

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is streamlining incentive programs for companies adapting to innovations and matching grants for startups to complement the recently launched Regional Inclusive Innovation Center (RIIC).

During the RIIC launch on Wednesday, Trade and Industry undersecretary for competitiveness and innovation group Rafaelita Aldaba said among the programs that they are crafting for startups are the matching grants and income tax holidays for earning startups.

“To support the startups, we are now crafting the matching grant. It will be implemented by the National Development Corporation (NDC) because we (DTI) cannot invest in a startup,” she said.

DTI will be matching startups to funders such as venture capitalists.

An eased tax for as long as six years, she said, will also be granted for startups that have been generating income.

“There are actually already startups that have been applying because they are already in the higher stage of the commercialization. They already have clients, markets, and hence they have income,” Aldaba said.

She added they are also planning to provide soft loans to companies who will be adopting new technologies in their operations and training for their workers.

She said the agency has partnered with Siemens, a US-based innovation company and accelerators in Singapore.

“We would like to see more companies adapting new technologies and conducting more and a strong collaboration on all the stakeholders,” she said.

She said there is more financial support needed to be competitive apart from the grant provided by the Philippine Innovation Act.

“The Philippine Innovation Act would provide us with P1 billion funding. It is not enough, especially if you compare the amount to what our neighbors are providing to their government agencies and academe,” she said.

DTI in Davao Region (DTI-Davao) regional director Ma. Belenda Ambi said the central office are still in the process of drafting and reviewing the guidelines and the implementing rules and regulations (IRR).

Ambi added they targeted to finish it within the semester.

For now, Aldaba said the existing programs of the DTI will help the startups in the marketing and entrepreneurship trainings towards commercialization of their innovations.

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