Greening strategies pushed to sustain MSME operations

CEBU, Philippines - Since micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are considered among the most vulnerable to the impact of climate change due to their limited resources, the prime movers of the Philippine economy are encouraged to integrate greening strategies into their policies, processes and operations to enhance their competitiveness and ensure sustainable growth.

 Dr. Volker Steigerwald, project manager of the Promotion of Green Economic Development of Deutsche Gesellschaftfür Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ ProGED) said that the long-term competitiveness of enterprises will be greatly affected by its ability to adapt to climate change and incorporate green growth strategies.

Steigerwald was one of the resource speakers during the Eko Fest Entrepreneurship Conference held last June 19 at Radisson Blu Hotel in line with this year’s Cebu Business Month.

In his presentation entitled “Enhancing MSMEs Competitiveness through Greening Strategies”, he said that the MSME sector is very much affected by the availability and fluctuations of prices of power, fuel, water and production inputs that could eventually cause serious implications in their businesses.

“If we continue with “business as usual”that could actually be affected with social and economic impacts of climate change, we may not be able to sustain the competitiveness of our enterprises and the country as a whole,” he said.

Such impacts, he cited, include the recurrence of droughts that will cause a drop in our agricultural productivity, sudden changes in temperature which may lead to massive fishkills, and increased rainfall that can cause extensive damage on crops, property, and infrastructure among others.

“All of these in turn, would translate to social and economic issues pertaining to livelihood, access to basic services, availability of infrastructure and others that would exacerbate poverty in the country,” he added.

According to the World Risk Report 2011 that was published by the United Nations University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security and the German Alliance Development Works, Philippines ranked third in the list of most vulnerable to climate change, following only Vanatu and Tonga, out of the 173 countries studied for disaster risk.

The Philippines experiences 20 typhoons per year on average. From 1990 to 2008, the annual cost of damage related to extreme weather events in the Philippines is estimated at 1 percent of the GDP.

Steigerwald further noted that the adaptation of green business strategies can address the negative impacts of climate change on the MSME sector, thus enhancing their competitiveness and ensuring their sustainability and survival in the industry.

“A transition to Green Economic Development can be a driver for competitiveness, innovation, new markets, and job generation which then lead towards inclusive growth and poverty reduction,” he stated.

He explained that these greening strategies include the use of technologies,  processes, and business practices that could improve the efficiency in the use of  power, water and resources, reduce adverse impacts on the environment, improve solid and waste water management, reduce water and air pollution, lessen climate-related risks and produce green products and services.

Steigerwald then urged MSME players and government institutions to implement environment-friendly, climate-smart and inclusive strategies and measures in their operations./JOB (FREEMAN)