MANILA – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed Ma. Cristina Aldeguer-Roque as the Acting Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), following the resignation of Secretary Alfredo Pascual, the Palace said Friday. 

Previously an undersecretary, Aldeguer-Roque had led the agency’s MSME Development Group, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO). 

“She oversees critical areas including the Bureau of Small and Medium Enterprise Development, the Bureau of Marketing Development and Promotions, the OTOP Program Management Office, and the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Management Office,” the PCO said. 

“Additionally, she manages the operations of the Small Business Corporation and the Cooperative Development Authority.”  

Marcos said Aldeguer-Roque’s “dedication and leadership in the MSME sector make her an excellent choice for the position,” the PCO said on Facebook.   

Undersecretary Roque holds a BS Industrial Management Engineering degree, minor in Chemical Engineering, from De La Salle University.

Meanwhile, Pascual resigned from his post to go back to the private sector. He is a seasoned banker and former University of the Philippines president.