ILIGAN CITY (PIA)--Bualan Agrarian Reform Community Cooperative (BARCOCO), an Agrarian Reform Beneficiary Organization (ARBO) in Lanao del Norte, enhances its business operations by launching its own website (www.barcoco.my.canva.site). 

BARCOCO utilized Canva, a popular graphic design platform, to create its digital content. The cooperative has also enrolled as a merchant in Shopee Marketplace to further widen its market reach. 

Embracing digitalization is not new for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), especially during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. More consumers have shifted to online shopping, prompting business establishments to create online marketing channels, including Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program entrepreneurs (CARPreneurs). This gave CARPreneurs the chance to boost their knowledge and skills pertaining to digitalization.

For BARCOCO, the shift to digitalization led to increased demand for its banana flour and banana chips.

The digital initiative was implemented after two program coordinators from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)—Lanao del Norte’s Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP)—successfully participated in a series of trainings conducted by the Philippine Trade Training Center in coordination with the DTI-CARP Program Management Office.
 
The two training courses were Digital Literacy Training for E-Commerce and Building Back Better Business via E-commerce and Digital Marketing. The training equipped the CARP coordinators with the necessary skills and tools that can assist CARPreneurs in pivoting their businesses from traditional marketing to digital marketing.

The capability-building training is in line with DTI Lanao del Norte’s goal to develop and equip the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries   in Agrarian Reform Communities with the right mindset and knowledge to help them become more effective and efficient in scaling up their business ventures. (DTI Lanao del Norte/PIA-10/Lanao del Norte)