The road to prosperity
 02 Oct. 2007

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The 2007 SIPAG National Awardee for Most Outstanding Micro-entrepreneur is our best guide on the road to prosperity.

In the words of National Livelihood Support Fund (NLSF) Executive Director Gondelina Amata, we don’t have to look very far for innovative ways to combat poverty, as demonstrated by the entrepreneurial saga of Dominador Returban of Binalbagan, Negros Occidental, winner of this year’s Sustainable Income for People in Agrarian Grassroots or SIPAG Award.

At the 26th Anniversary of NLSF, the 2nd SIPAG awards were also presented to the Most Outstanding Program Partners at the regional and national levels. NLSF, which is one of the Government financial institutions actively involved in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) lending is concentrating on agrarian reform communities and beneficiaries, who largely fall into the microenterprise category.

Starting out as a vendor of polvoron and sundry foodstuff, Dominador Returban is now the biggest baker of Binalbagan, supplying his pandesal and pastries to stores and tiendas spread all over Negros Island -- literally turning his business from polvoron sa bilao to a bakery chain.

From being self-employed, Mr. Returban has now become a principal employer in his town. And from his microearnings, he has built a new home, and sends his children to better schools.

Hard work, diligence, perseverance and sipag made it all happen for Dominador, but he was nonetheless profuse with his gratitude to the NLSF: "Sana marami pang matulungan sa katulad naming mahihirap," he said as he received his award.

By the way, last year’s SIPAG Awardee, Virginia Campos, an Amakan weaver from Agusan del Sur, continues to do well in her microenterprise. She has expanded her business into a sari-sari store, and is now building a new house for her family.

Inspired by the successes, the President is determined to uplift the poor and the underprivileged through new jobs created by entrepreneurship. In 2008, funding of development undertakings that would ultimately redound to the benefit of the poor will be increased to P166.7 billion, an increase of some P62.2 billion from the 2007 budget of P104.5 billion. The MSME program is part of this budget.

Since its launching in 2004, the loans to Small and Medium Enterprise sector amounted to P96 billion, generating about 462,143 new jobs; the microfinance program reached lending levels of P64.12 billion, benefiting 2.57 million active microfinance clients and creating 1.03 million new jobs.

NLSF, according to Director Amata, released P1.7 billion to over 140,000 individual entrepreneurs as of end June, 2007.

The anniversary theme of NLSF this year is "Igniting the Microentrepreneurial Spirit Towards Greater Achievements," an aspiration mirrored in the success of the SIPAG awardees.

At the Anniversary, too, was Land Bank of the Philippines President and CEO, Gilda Pico, one of the pillars of MSME.

If I might quote excerpts from my remarks delivered on awards night:

"The economic gains that we are experiencing would be nothing if our underprivileged countrymen, including those in agrarian communities, do not feel a trickle down of their effect. We should show them that their government is ready to help those who are willing to help themselves rise out of poverty.

"We want to keep the entrepreneurial spirit in our people burning and raging. We call on every sector of our society to support this noble cause; we are all part of the solution and only by working together can we help our people find the right road to peace and prosperity.

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