The Philippines have emerged as one of the fastest growing economies in the world, impressively rivaling the growth rates of fellow Asian countries. Integral to the economic development and growth of the Philippines is the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), as they largely outnumber large enterprises in both quantity of establishments and share of the labor employment.

To provide industry market intelligence to boost the business of SMEs, MEDIACOM Solution Inc. is staging the 2nd Philippine Small & Medium Enterprise Business Expo 2014 (PhilSME) with the tagline “Boost Your Business”.

PhilSME 2014 – to be held from November 21-23 at the SMX Convention Center Manila, Pasay City – is the largest trade show dedicated to the ASEAN SME Community in the Philippines with 238 exhibiting businesses from 18 business sectors and 20,000 expected visitors.

“We aim to put together under one roof SME business owners, senior-level executives, professionals, government agencies, trade associations from the Philippines and the ASEAN region to synergize their efforts in order to boost their businesses and the Philippine economy at large. The ASEAN economic community will become the 7th largest economy in the world with a combined consumer market of over 600 million people,” said David Abrenilla, Founder and Managing Director of PhilSME 2014 and CEO of MEDIACOM Solutions, Inc.

Philippine Trade Undersecretary for Regional Operations Group Zenaida C. Maglaya recognized the pivotal role SMEs play in fuelling the economy as they account for 99.6 percent of total registered enterprises, according to recent trade department data.

In response to this, Abrenilla added, “We would like to provide the gateway for this new market brought about by the ASEAN integration. The PhilSME 2014 will be their one-stop shop for all their business needs from seeking advice from qualified experts to networking with key decision makers to gathering market intelligence.”

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) President Alfredo M. Yao, in his speech at a recent event, listed factors challenging the private sector’s readiness and competitiveness under the economic integration in 2015 and cited the need for initiatives, such as workshops, to prepare SMEs for the upcoming ASEAN integration.

Yao listed the challenges such as high cost of power and logistics, inadequate transport infrastructure and access of SMEs to financing and technology.