*Participation in this event is limited to businesses operating in the Philippines

Background

The Circular Economy (CE) is firmly on the agenda of regional and national policy makers in East Asia and an emerging requirement of leading international buyers. At the same time, a growing number of businesses find that adopting CE benefits their business through costs savings, new product and market access, and improved business resilience, whilst at the same time doing good for environment and society.

The ASEAN Circular Economy Business Alliance (ACEBA) works to get businesses started with CE, through best practice sharing, networking, capacity building and business support services. Working with the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, country lead for the Philippines, and the Global Compact Network Philippines, ACEBA invites small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for an introductory online workshop on the circular economy, and on the Circular Business Check, a self-diagnostic tool for SMEs.

Enabling circular business development and investment

ACEBA has entered the next stage to support circular business development and investment in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Lao PDR. This starts with enabling enterprises to determine their current understanding of and activities towards CE, for which the Circular Business Check is developed and being piloted.

The Circular Business Check aims to become a self-assessment tool leading to a balanced circular business score, and customized guidance for advancing CE within the assessed enterprise.

The Circular Business Check also seeks to point to potential support needs, e.g., for CE-driven product and business development; for planning and starting circular business transition; or for scaling up and commercializing innovative circular solutions. ACEBA is working towards offering further training and mentoring initiatives to address such support needs.

Getting your business started

To kick off these business support initiatives in the Philippines, ACEBA is hosting this starter workshop, under its partnership with the East Asia Business Council. This starter workshop aims to:

-- Provide an East Asian-centric introduction to CE, and the opportunities this presents for responsible business development;

-- Share, discuss, and learn from good CE-relevant business practices in Southeast Asia; and

-- Introduce the Circular Business Check, and invite businesses to participate in its pilot testing, and in follow-up initiatives.

TARGET PARTICIPANTS. This starter workshop is designed to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the PHILIPPINES operating in, but not limited to, the following sectors:

· Food and beverage

· Textile and garments

· Leather and footwear

· Furniture and homewares

· Electric and electronic products

· Building and construction

· Tourism and hospitality

                                                           Provisional Agenda

About ACEBA. ACEBA is a business-led, ASEAN-centric initiative to promote and facilitate business leadership and action on CE, coordinated by ARAIBA Sdn Bhd, a not-for-profit business organization that works to advance responsible business practices in ASEAN and beyond.

ACEBA was launched in July 2024, with the participation of the ASEAN Secretariat, the ASEAN Business Advisory Council and the European Union Delegation to ASEAN, and operates with the technical support of the EU SWITCH-Asia Policy Support Component.

Following extensive business and stakeholders’ consultations around Southeast Asia, ACEBA developed a principles-based Circular Economy Framework for Business, which serves as the foundation for its advocacy, knowledge sharing and networking activities. Moreover, ACEBA has developed over 90 Circular Economy business cases covering diverse sectors and types and sizes of business from Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

Their collective experiences have been transformed into a business guide for unlocking the circularity opportunity, which provides a flexible action menu for businesses to start, chart and implement their circularity transition.