President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will ask Washington for US$95 million in technical and financial assistance to boost the growth of local small- and medium-size enterprises, said Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel A. Roxas II.
Roxas, who is with the President on her US state visit this week, said the bulk of the funds would go to the state-owned Small Business Corp. He said SB Corp would use US$30 million to augment its fund base since it has not yet attained its desired capital base of P5 billion.
He added that the government was also hoping to obtain US$25 million from the US government, which it would use as seed money for an equity venture fund that would give capital to promising SMEs over the next five years.
