The Department of Science and Technology’s Innovations for Filipinos Working Distantly from the Philippines (iFWDPH) program was featured on the Feb. 20, 2025 episode of Tekno Presyensya, the DOST Region 1 radio program in partnership with DZAG Radyo Pilipinas Agoo.
Daisy Rose Sidayen, iFWDPH project staff for DOST Region 1, discussed how the program supports overseas Filipino workers looking to establish technology-based enterprises in the country. The iFWDPH program provides training, resources and financial assistance to empower OFWs and their families to start businesses in sectors such as food processing, agriculture, information and communications technology and health.
Applications for the program are open until Feb. 28. Interested applicants are encouraged to contact DOST Region 1 for inquiries.
Sidayen said iFWDPH is designed to help returning and active OFWs, as well as their immediate families, transition into entrepreneurship. The program is structured into two phases.
Phase 1, the Technopreneurship Capacity Building stage, spans three months and provides participants with essential business knowledge, including opportunity identification, product development, supply chain management and e-commerce strategies. Participants also undergo the iFWDPH Bootcamp, where they craft business proposals and refine their pitches for potential funding.