Malacañang on Friday called on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) affected by the ongoing Middle East conflict to avail of the government’s PHP4 billion emergency loan program.

In a statement, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said the initiative is part of the comprehensive aid package approved by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to help cushion the impact of rising logistics costs, cash flow constraints, and supply chain disruptions on businesses.

“As part of the safety nets, not only for the highly vulnerable sectors but for the middle class and small entrepreneurs as well, President Marcos has cleared a program for MSMEs in distress as a result of the global oil shock to avail of easy loans ranging from PHP30,000 to PHP20 million each,” Recto said.

The program, implemented through the Department of Trade and Industry and its financing arm Small Business (SB) Corp., aims to provide accessible credit to affected enterprises to help them sustain operations amid global economic pressures.

Recto said the loans are designed to function as a lifeline for MSMEs facing limited access to financing during periods of economic uncertainty.

He noted that the loan facility features low interest rates and a repayment period of up to five years, with a one-year grace period on both principal and interest payments.

Applications may be filed online, and the SB Corp.’s processing for complete submissions is expected to take seven to 10 days.

Recto said that while MSME bank lending increased by 5 percent to PHP574.8 billion as of end-December 2025, this represents only 4.73 percent of the country’s PHP12.14 trillion total bank loan portfolio. (PNA)