CITEM seeks P1.5b budget for export promotion

The Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) is seeking a substantial increase in its budget to strengthen the country’s export promotion efforts, especially amid growing global uncertainties.

CITEM executive director Leah Ocampo said the agency receives less than P300 million in funding, far below the P1.5 billion allocated to the Department of Tourism (DOT) for promotional activities.

“We can only promote what is there, and that’s the problem—it’s an all-of-government predicament. Even promotion is not being given enough budget. We will be pushing for P1.5 billion budget for next year,” she said on the sidelines of the KATHA Awards for Food 2025 held May 15, 2025, in Pasay, Manila.

Ocampo said that under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Executive Order No. 75, which strengthens CITEM’s role as an export promotion agency, there is renewed hope that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) will approve a bigger budget starting next year.

CITEM plans to add five more trade events to its calendar, including shows in China and Italy.

However, budget constraints limit the agency’s capacity to provide wider support for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and to develop industry capabilities.

Ocampo said that if the country is serious about export development, a review of the budget allocations is necessary.

“For export promotions, we’re getting less than P300 million. DOT has P1.5 billion. If we’re serious as a government to develop industries for export, we need a budget at least equivalent to that,” she said.

She also pointed out that despite the trade negotiations on tariff matters, such as the recent US visit of Trade secretary Chris Roque and Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs secretary Frederick Go, local exporters, particularly furniture makers, still face steep production costs that make Philippine products less competitive.

“Even if our tariffs are lower than our neighbors, the cost of operating here remains high, like electricity, labor, and raw materials. We’re not mechanized like Indonesia or Vietnam. We cannot do mass production, but we can lead with design. There’s value in handcrafted pieces,” she said.

She reiterated that CITEM’s work is only one part of the larger export value chain.

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