CEBU, Philippines - If effectively marketed, hand woven bayongs with upgraded designs and styles are eyed to possibly capture an estimated P1.3 billion demand from the local market which is currently being eaten up by China-made plastic products.
In an interview during the launching of the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Project Bayong in Barili, Gateway East managing director Cesar D. Cueto explained the huge prospect of bayongs in the country’s domestic market.
Gateway East is a Manila-based privately-owned company which advocates environmental projects and is DTI’s private sector partner in its Project Bayong.
Cueto said that bayongs can tap into the P1.3 billion domestic market if it will be marketed well and if its styles and image will be upgraded so as to eliminate the biases that have since been acquainted with the product.
In his presentation, Cueto said that bayongs can help end the use of plastics which is causing degradation to our environment.
He cited Manila Bay as an example of how plastics can degrade and pollute the environment and said that since Cebu is starting to become an industrialized city, we should not let the same situation happen because it is still not yet too late to do something about the wide use of plastics.
Cueto said that by capitalizing on bayongs, not only could we eliminate the use of environmentally degrading plastics but we can also help augment the income of our own Filipino people.
“In the long term plastic is not cheaper and through patronizing plastics, we are only helping other countries such as China where these plastics are imported to grow its economy than our own. If we utilize bayongs, we will not only help the environment but also our own people,” said Cueto.
He said that for micro entrepreneurs, bayong making does not require big investment or capital and since it requires highly technical weaving skills, it can generate more employment.
He also said that bayong making can also maximize the use of our own indigenous materials which is a good alternative than using plastics or synthetic fabrics imported from China.
“We an also help augment the income of our people especially those in the countryside and we can also preserve our cultural heritage of weaving. Bayong making is a sustainable anti-poverty program,” said Cueto.
He said that to effectively carry out this initiative, we should first eradicate the negative biases of using bayongs which include its image of being a poor man’s container making one look provincial or old fashioned.
“Through product development, we can change the image of the bayong. We can improve its style, change its handles, incorporate various colors and use mixed materials and enhance its designs so that it will be marketable not only to the domestic but as well as the international market,” said Cueto.
He pointed out that if only every family above the poverty threshold buy one bayong at around P50 to P100 a piece in a year, then it would generate around P1.3 billion domestic demand and it can provide P520 million income to the labor sector and generate 16, 000 jobs.
Then he added that if every high income family would buy another bayong for supermarket and grocery use, then this potential demand can double up to P2.6 billion and employ 32, 000 workers.
“We should protect the domestic market so that China will not benefit from supplying plastics. Consumer’s help must be harnessed through changing habits and all it will take us to achieve that is to work together, harness the talents of our own people and reduce the use of plastic but instead use bayong as an alternative,” stressed Cueto.