Social Enterprise Model Fostering Change in Philippines

At the recent "Social Enterprise: The Next Business Model" conference in Manila, Philippines, some of the leading social entrepreneurs of the country shared their experiences about achieving financial self-sufficiency while making an impact on the local communities. The number of social enterprises in the Philippines is on the rise, and these enterprises are taking up diversified issues such as agrarian reform, environmental activism, protecting the rights of indigenous people and distribution of organic rice.

Bobby Calingo, executive director of the Peace and Equity Foundation (PEF), says, "Indeed, now is the time for the social enterprise. They're not new in the field of development, but only in the last few years do you see them coming together, moving up, and scaling in terms of their markets. Only now do we see community-based products being sold in department stores; and these are good products with good packaging and competitive prices."

PEF is a leading social investment organization that has engaged closely with several social enterprises to tackle challenging local issues such as providing drinking water, basic healthcare and disaster relief to the country's weakest communities. PEF aims to provide for the financial needs of such enterprises as well as offer technical support and guidance.

The co-founder and managing director of MicroVentures, Inc., Mark Ruiz, shared his experience at the conference about setting up a successful social enterprise, Hapinoy, that aims to support local communities. Ruiz says, "The story of Hapinoy is really two worlds coming together. When my business partner and I decided to put up a business, we wanted that at its core it should help people. And what we try to do in Hapinoy is basically empower disadvantaged women in rural areas, particularly sari-sari store owners working with microfinance institutions (MFIs)."

In a majority of industries in the Philippines, the supply chain is the most critical factor for an enterprise to achieve success. Charlie Villasenor, CEO of TransProcure, a supply management company, says, "It is that area that will actually determine if your business is going to be profitable, reactive or proactive, if you're going to be sustainable, have obsolete inventories or if you're going to lose the market you're trying to cater to." Villasenor says that social enterprises need an end-to-end analysis of their position with regard to the supply chain.

Photo Credit: evobrained