DTI moves to lower MSMEs’ logistics costs

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February 12, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) yesterday welcomed 12 logistics partners under an initiative aimed at lowering logistics costs for businesses, especially micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

A ceremonial signing was held yesterday to onboard the DTI’s second batch of partners for the Supply Chain and Logistics Center (SCLC) network, which aims to lower logistics costs, improve connectivity and make logistics services more accessible for MSMEs.

DTI’s new partners for the SCLC are the Association of International Shipping Lines, GO21 Inc., In-line Logistics Philippines Inc., JRS Business Corp., J&T Express Philippines, Mober Technology, Philippine Chamber of Customs Brokers Inc., Private Express Messengerial Association of the Philippines, Procurement and Supply Institute of Asia, Shopee Xpress Philippines Inc., Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. and Victory Liner Inc.

With the addition of these 12 organizations, the SCLC is now supported by a total of 30 logistics partners.

These new partners share the DTI’s objective of strengthening logistics access, reducing barriers to market and enhancing the supply chain resilience for businesses of all sizes.

The DTI launched the SCLC initiative in June last year to address the logistics and supply chain concerns of MSMEs.

Through the initiative, the DTI and its partners aim to provide real-time assistance, service referrals, logistics cost information and regulatory guidance through a dedicated hotline and online portal.

Trade Undersecretary Mary Jean Pacheco said the SCLC, with support from the Asian Development Bank and the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines, has started the development of a comprehensive supply chain database of information vital to the sector.

She said the portal has reached over 21,100 visits from 6,119 unique visitors.

She also said there are plans to establish a physical SCLC in partnership with the local government unit of Taytay to serve 3,000 businesses in the area.

During the same event, the DTI also launched the Supply Chain and Logistics Guild (SCLG), composed of 33 industry practitioners in end-to-end logistics domains, including international shipping, freight forwarding, port and cargo handling, warehousing and cold chain, procurement and inventory management, pricing and financial modeling, data analytics, packaging, digital supply chain systems, last-mile logistics, customs compliance and business process improvement.

Through the SCLG, the aim is to ensure that reforms are grounded in real operational conditions across food, retail, manufacturing, export and e-commerce supply chains.

As the DTI aims to help MSMEs link into global value chains, Trade Secretary Cristina Roque said that there is a need to help these businesses use logistics and supply chains to their advantage.

“Sometimes, the movement of goods is more expensive than the product itself. So you really need to find ways to really help them,” she said.

Through the SCLC and SCLG, she said the goal is to develop a stronger, smarter and seamless logistics system that will provide Filipino products – from the smallest farm to the largest factory – a clear path to the world.