As with other provinces in the country, Aklan was not spared when the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world in late 2019. Making COVID's presence strongly felt in 2020 until now, it brought sickness to many, and deaths too.  It affected Aklan’s booming economy propped up by the agri-tourism thrust of the province, and other local industries that made Aklan well-known not only in the country but throughout the world.

One group that has since propelled Aklan’s local industries to thrive is the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), which are involved in producing various products like woven piña and abaca cloth, gifts and housewares, processed meat and bakery products, native delicacies, “pasalubong” items, and many more - and this group had its share of sufferings when COVID-19 struck.

Some MSMEs closed, some reduced their manpower, while others reduced their production during the pandemic.  In all of these, the most affected were the workers.

As other MSMEs temporarily stopped operating, their weavers lost their jobs too, and some of them applied at HAMPCO.

Due to the additional weavers, HAMPCO was able to produce in 2021 some 2,000 to 3,000 meters of abaca silk per month, readily bought by a buyer in Manila, which were eventually exported to Japan and the United States of America.

“We pay the weaver P200.00 for every meter of cloth she weaves, and there are those who deliver to us 64 meters per month. At P200 per meter, this weaver of 64 meters earns P12,800.00,” Lanzon said.

Through all the challenges the cooperative faced – before and during the pandemic, Lanzon said they have the government to thank for – particularly the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) – for connecting them with buyers, training their workers, and providing them handlooms through the Shared Service Facility (SSF) program of the agency.

Meanwhile, Rose Sauza of Rosa Foods, one of Aklan’s pioneer producers of processed meat and meat products, said that she continued her business in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and now that restrictions have been somehow eased as Aklan is now under Alert Level 1, she said her sales have started picking up.

Her display area is located along the national highway in a Kalibo barangay and according to her, buyers, some passing after vacationing in Boracay, regularly stop to buy meat products from her establishment.

To help other entrepreneurs who are producing non-meat products, she also invited them to display their products like pastries, candies, and other pasalubong items in her store, so that like her, they could start earning gradually and rise from the challenges caused by the pandemic. (JBG/VGV/PIA6 Aklan)