City Hall implements safety seal certification program for businesses

To boost consumer confidence and ensure the implementation of health and safety protocols under the “new normal”, the Iloilo City government has implemented the Safety Seal Certification Program of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Iloilo City City Mayor Jerry P. Treñas issued Executive Order (EO) No. 60 on Wednesday mandating the adoption of the certification program in business establishments.

Under the EO, the mayor ordered the creation of the Iloilo City Safety Seal Certification Program Inspection and Certification Committee headed by the Business Process Licensing Division (BPLD).

The committee will be the core group and secretariat tasked to facilitate the application and inspection of the establishments. The group will also monitor the compliance of businesses.

The  adoption of the certification program will cover all private business establishments, selected public places, and other offices, including but not limited to malls; wet markets; other retail stores; restaurants outside hotels and resorts; food preparation establishments; banks, money changers, pawnshops, remittance centers, and microfinance institutions; car wash; laundry service centers; art galleries, libraries, museums, zoo; sports center; tutorial, testing and review centers; gyms; spas; cinemas; arcades and all other establishments that are allowed to open subject to the quarantine restrictions imposed by the government.

Businesses will have to comply with the checklist provided in the safety seal website of the DTI including their compliance to the regulation of accreditation requirements, use of StaySafe.ph, UswagTracer application, or any contact tracing tool and enforcement of the minimum public health standards.

Then, it will have to be verified by the core team before finally awarding them with the safety seal certification.

Treñas said the certification program seeks to boost the consumer confidence in businesses as well as protect the public from Covid-19 and ensure the compliance of establishments with the minimum public health standards set by the Iloilo City government.

“As more businesses are now slated to open to boost the economy, especially in the event the quarantine classifications are downgraded anew, the Safety Seal certification program is a practice program to boost consumer confidence in businesses,” he said in the EO. (ERS)