The Philippine Footwear Federation, Inc. (PFFI) has urged the government to locally source footwear used by uniformed personnel.
PFFI Director-General Roger Py said the group is tapping lawmakers to include this amendment to Republic Act 9290 or the Footwear, Leather Goods, and Tannery Industries Development Act.
Py said the government can procure shoes for uniformed personnel such as military boots, shoes for seamen, and footwear for the police and firefighters from local shoemakers.
He said a big volume of footwear for uniformed personnel is imported.
Py said it would be better if local industries will benefit from taxpayers’ money, and that can be done if the government will source its needs from domestic players.
“It will help us recover from the impacts of the pandemic,” he added.
He said the footwear industry was affected badly by the lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the industry has not yet restarted.
Py added the closure of schools also had a big impact on the footwear industry.
Py said the PFFI is also pushing for the inclusion of footwear under the United States Generalized System of Preferences (U.S. GSP) once the Philippine government applies for the renewal of the preferential tariff treatment which expired on Dec. 31, 2020.
If footwear will be included in the GSP, Philippine-made footwear can enter the U.S. market duty-free.
Under the U.S. GSP program, 70 percent of the country’s exports to the U.S. enter the market at zero tariffs. – PNA release
April 23, 2024
