ILOILO CITY – The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) on Tuesday unveiled the 2025-2030 Regional Action Plan for Startup Development during the opening ceremony for the Western Visayas Innovative Startup Festival and Tech Expo 2025 at the Iloilo Convention Center here.

Developed by the Regional Research, Development and Innovation Committee of the Western Visayas Regional Development Council, the components of the action plan, included innovation structure development, capability-building and talent development, startup support services and acceleration, policy support, ecosystem governance, and knowledge and technology transfer.

In a press conference, DOST Undersecretary for Research and Development Leah Buendia said it is very interesting to note that the plan has a support group as one of its pillars.

"I think this is the uniqueness in the region. It's not always top-down; there is also bottom-up because each region is unique," she said.

DOST Regional Director for Western Visayas Rowen Gelonga said innovative startups have many stages, but at the local level, they tend to look into four phases, including the pre-incubation, where one of the initiatives of the agency is the establishment of hubs in all its provincial offices.

"This is where we try to do brainstorming, small group discussions to come up with very good ideas that can transform into a viable business," he said.

Once approved, it is endorsed to technical business incubators, where startups are mentored to become commercially viable.

Western Visayas has been in the formative stage of an innovative startup ecosystem in the past four to five years.

Two to three years from now, Gelonga said, he is confident that there will be more success stories.

Meanwhile, the startup festival, spearheaded by the Unified Movement in Western Visayas to Accelerate Startup and Spinoff Development, features diverse activities, including conferences, training workshops, expositions, forums, and pitching competitions to celebrate and strengthen the region's innovation and startup ecosystem.