Who we are
The Design Center of the Philippines is an agency under the Department of Trade and Industry, mandated to promote the use of design as a tool in strengthening the national competitiveness of Philippine products and services, and in empowering Filipino micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and designers for the local and global markets.
What we do
The Design Center continues to cultivate the country’s creative capital, and strengthen the culture surrounding design as a response to design’s role in accelerating businesses by creating new value, new markets, and new user experiences.
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What we've been up to
Designing Futures: How the DTI-Design Center Champions Creative Industries for Global MSMEs
Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) comprise 99.63% of businesses in the Philippines, yet they continue to face persistent barriers to growth: limited access to financing, constrained production capacity, and difficulty reaching new markets. In response, the Design Center of the Philippines, an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), is advancing a bold strategy, positioning design not merely as aesthetic enhancement, but as a catalyst for economic transformation. “Design is our soft power,” said Rhea Matute, Executive Director of the Design Center. “It draws from our cultural depth, our resourcefulness, and our capacity to imagine. When we embed design into enterprise, we don’t just improve products, we unlock new forms of value, dignity, and global relevance for Filipino creators.”
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What's coming up
The Design Center continues to cultivate the country’s creative capital, and strengthen the culture surrounding design as a response to design’s role in accelerating businesses by creating new value, new markets, and new user experiences.
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Resources
Manus x Machina
The complex and often ambiguous relationship between the hand crafted and the machine made is examined in this intriguing look at the ever-changing world of fashion and taste. Manus x Machina traces styles of dress from one-of-a-kind works and haute couture created by highly skilled artisans, through the introduction of industrial manufacturing, to extraordinary recent technological advancements applied to high fashion, such as 3D printing, laser cutting, and computer-generated weaving and patterns. The oppositional relationship between the machine, as representative of democracy and mass production, and the hand, as the hallmark of elitism, is explored in its many facets in this fascinating book.
How we serve
Section 93 of the Republic Act No. 10924, otherwise known as the FY 2017 General Appropriations Act (GAA), states that to enhance transparency and enforce accountability, all agencies of the government shall maintain a Transparency Seal to be posted on their websites.
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