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30 June 2022 | Report

Gendered Impacts of MSME Policy Responses to COVID-19 in South East Asia (Vietnam)

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Summary

This country report focuses on men- and women-owned/led MSMEs and the COVID-19 policy responses in the Philippines. It aims to assess MSMEs policy responses in the Philippines and examines gender-based differences regarding the impact of the pandemic and MSMEs survival strategies. It also investigates the MSME policy responses in 2020 in the Philippines, evaluating whether and how women-led/owned enterprises have benefitted from these measures. 

 

Contents 

  • List of Acronyms 
  • Executive Summary 
  • 1 Introduction 
  • 2 Background 
    • 2.1 Policy infrastructures for women empowerment and entrepreneurship  
    • 2.2 COVID -19 policy responses for MSMEs 
      • 2.2.1 Debt financing 
      • 2.2.2 Employment support
      • 2.2.3 Business support
  • 3 Research Design and Methodology 
    • 3.1 Quantitative data: Online survey 
    • 3.2 Qualitative data: Key informant interviews and focus group discussions 
      • 3.2.1 Research approach, design, and conceptual framework 
      • 3.2.2 Data collection methods 
  • 4 Synthesis of results of the online survey 
    • 4.1 Definition of Women-Owned/Led MSME (WMSME) 
    • 4.2 Discussion of results 
  • 5 Synthesis of the KIIs and FGDs 
    • 5.1 Learnings from agencies and business communities 
      • 5.1.1 Policy design 
      • 5.1.2 Policy implementation 
      • 5.1.3 Policy monitoring and evaluation 
  • 5.2 Learnings from entrepreneurs 
  • 6 Recommendations 
  • References 

This report was originally published on the Monash University website. 

View all Gendered Impacts of MSME Policy Responses to COVID-19 in South East Asia: 

Highlights

  • Sixty-two percent of men MSEs (MMSMEs) and 76% of women MSMEs (WMSMEs) consider payments of other expenses either to be either a minor or major problem. However, a larger percentage of MMSMEs than WMSMEs (60% versus 46%) consider the payment of staff wages and entitlements to be a problem. 
  • Almost all WMSMEs survey found payment of loans, invoices, staff wages and other expenses a huge obstacle since the beginning of the pandemic. 
  • Thirty-nine percent of WMSMEs found the lack of collateral/guarantee, difficulties in accessing trade finance or supplier credit, high interest rates, and high repayment risks due to market uncertainties difficult, compared to only 34% of MMSMEs. 
  • In terms of strategies used to operate the business in 2020, online selling, utilization of their own funds, and reduction in the business’ expenses are among the commonly used strategies. 
  • Online selling through social media (e.g., Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp) is the most preferred strategy implemented by WMSMEs and MMSMEs. 
  • With respect to the support sought from the government sector, the lack of awareness on most government support programs, like programs on subsidized wage and loans, postponement of payments to debtors, and the shared service facilities21, is glaring for both male and female enterprises. 
  • Businesses find some of the government policies were helpful during the pandemic. Around 39% of WMSMEs find the support for digitization and the technical assistance to be substantially helpful. 

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