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Members of the board of judges and guests during the awarding ceremonies join representatives of this year’s Sinag Accelerate winning social enterprises.

Ten social enterprises—small and medium businesses that are not only financially sustainable but have also made a significant impact in their communities—received recently the Sinag Accelerate 2017 award of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Foundation.

The outstanding changemakers, chosen from 20 finalists, were found to be ready not just to scale up their enterprises but also to strengthen their impact on community and countryside development.

Maricris L. San Diego, vice president and BPI Foundation executive director, explained that Sinag was distinct from other recognition programs for modest business ventures because of its “focus on social entrepreneurship.”

She said, aside from sustainability, nominees were judged on the social impact of their business ventures, how they had helped the communities and had contributed in addressing social and environmental issues and promoting the interests of the marginalized like persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, etc.

Replicability, or the capacity to transfer the knowledge, skills and technology of an enterprise to other people and/or other places, was also taken into account.

The winners in alphabetical order were:

1. Accents and Petals Crafts and Accessories, a novelty shop selling flowers made from recycled wood and paper

2. Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation Inc., which develops, manufactures and installs technologies such as ram pumps for drinking and irrigation water, for the poor in the uplands

3. Association of Differently-Abled Persons in Iloilo Multi-Purpose Cooperative, a furniture making business giving jobs to persons with disabilities

4. Buhatan River Eco-Adventure Service Cooperative, an ecotourism service in Sorsogon promoting the attractions of the Buhatan River

5. Coffee for Peace, a coffee supplier of world-class Arabica and Robusta beans working to promote peace in Mindanao

6. CustomMade Crafts Center Inc., a weaving novelty shop offering assorted items designed with hinabol fabric

7. Happy Helpers (Masasayang Nanay Home Services Corporation), a professional home cleaning service that employs and empowers mothers from poor communities

8. Lamlifew Village Museum and School of Living Tradition, a living museum that showcases the cultural practices of B’laan tribe in the Sarangani province

9. Mori Creations, a designer of innovative fashion accessories that collaborates with mothers from poor communities in Apolonio Samson, Quezon City

10. Zarraga Integrated Diversified Organic Farmers Association, a community of farmers revolutionizing rice growth with rich organic fertilizer

The 10 awardees of the BPI Sinag Accelerate 2017 will receive business incubation training and up to P500,000 in seed-funding grants. They also underwent in-depth business bootcamps run by BPI Foundation and partner organization Bayan Academy.

The panel of judges consisted of Ramon Noel Altamirano, vice president/division head for Retail Loans, Marketing and Systems, BPI; Calimon; Dr. Eduardo Morato, Jr., pesident, Bayan Academy for Social Entrepreneurship and Human Resources Inc.; Sheila Ramos, angel investor supporting budding enterprises; and Priya Thachadi, cofounder and chief executive officer of Villgro Philippines.

In the selection of Sinag winners, San Diego said they had devised measures to assess and authenticate social impact. But Sinag did not set a minimum number of beneficiaries, she said.

San Diego added that an important component of Sinag Accelerate was the mentoring of the nominated social entrepreneurs, who should have been involved in their businesses for at least two years.

Mentoring was even done during the awarding ceremonies.

In a discussion on the theme “Helping Social Enterprises Scale and Innovate Impactfully,” the finalists heard from four successful entrepreneurs: Carlo Calimon, digital marketing, business mentor for GoNegosyo and co-owner of GreenRides; Zarah Juan, designer of sustainable fashion, president of Green Leaf Bags; Anna Meloto-Wilk, president and cofounder of Human Nature; and Julie Carceller, former vice president and head of the multisegment marketing group of Smart Communications Inc., owner and designer of Touch of Crafts Inc.

Calimon advised the social entrepreneurs “to go digital.” He pointed out that everybody was more mobile and connected and had instant access to things they were interested in.

“It is important to love what you do,” Carceller stressed, while Juan said women who were allowed to work at home became more efficient and productive, as they could attend to their domestic chores even as they earned money making bags for her company.

Meloto-Wilk told the nominees to “define your values and stick to them.” Her company, she said, was “pro-Philippines, propoor and proenvironment.” She also told the entrepreneurs “to be prepared to work really, really hard for a long time” and reminded them to be good citizens by paying their taxes.

Undersecretary Zenaida Maglaya of the Department of Trade and Industry’s Regional Operations Group, in her keynote address, underscored the significance of social enterprises in the country and outlined the efforts of government to assist the businesses.

BPI Foundation believes supporting social enterprises is the most effective strategy to promote inclusive growth in the country.

San Diego said, “Social entrepreneurs aim to transform permanently and systematically an unfair social condition,” creating a product, service or a new way of doing things to promote transformation. The BPI Foundation, she said, was working with the entrepreneurs and supporting them to be a force of change that would guarantee no one was left behind.

BPI Sinag Accelerate is one of the two pillars of BPI Sinag Business Challenge, which aims to help social entrepreneurs scale up their businesses and magnify their impact on the community. —CONTRIBUTED

Follow BPI Sinag Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/BPISinag) and BPI Foundation on Facebook (www.facebook.com/BPIFoundation) or visit the official websites (sinag.bpifoundation.org) and (www.bpifoundation.org/).