Support facilities for women entrepreneurs eyed - MCCI

CEBU, Philippines - Following the success of the “Women in Need Now Entrepreneurs and Role Models” (Winners) program of the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), organizers are now looking at establishing support facilities for ordinary business-minded women in the locality.

The program’s chairperson Carmel de Pio-Salvador told The Freeman in an interview that the working committee for Winners is now looking at possibilities of establishing training center and a bank dedicated to serve the basic financial and technical needs for women.

Salvador said that while Winners program has  gained support from other organizations like the recently-concluded Asian Carriers Conference (ACC), and the plan of the Cebu provincial government to make the program a province-wide activity, a training center and a women’s bank are not difficult to realize.

“In the last three years, we’ve seen the struggles of ordinary women working hard and become role models in their communities, promoting and encouraging entrepreneurship  and yet they are not recognized, or even given opportunities to grow,” said Salvador.

She said there are a lot of organizations locally and internationally which could support this plan. The committee shall tap different groups and non-government organizations (NGOs) to pursue this plan.

Technical training is very important in order for women to be encouraged in growing their small businesses and increase their "self-worth”, said Salvador.

"Today, there are several credit card companies that even introduced a dedicated credit card for women. Why not bank?” she said.

Recently culminated its third year, the search for Winners is MCCI’s quest for model women micro-entrepreneurs from Mandaue who are struggling to rise from poverty through their small business ventures. Their stories of perseverance and creativity are seen to inspire other women to be empowered.

According to Salvador, in the next few years, while MCCI and the Winners committee are also finalizing decisions to make the search province-wide, there is also a bigger plan to make this program cover the national scope.

Certainly, she said while MCCI is limited in resources, Salvador hopes that the establishment of training center and a bank for women will be realized in the short or medium term.

She said establishing a bank for women is very important to raise the bar in providing financial assistance to micro-entrepreneurs in order not to be victimized by the “loan sharks” or locally known as 5/6 creditors, who are the only resort of small and “un-recognized” women vendors.

“They (women) are part of the ecosystem in the business community, they should be given a place in the development. MCCI recognizes this need,” Salvador said, expressing hope that this movement may drum up more support from local and international organizations, whose primary advocacy are on helping the micro-women entrepreneurs. —/JMD (FREEMAN)