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Little innovations add up to make a big difference

devnet — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 10:06:33 +0000

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The Philippines, June 2017 - Whether it is something unique in the product, its packaging or even the customer service itself, all these come-ons and sweeteners keep buyers satisfied and coming for more. Such is the story of two micro enterprises that started to be innovative in order to hold on to their place in the competitive market.

Ma. Josephine “Olive” Parilla, a native of Leyte in Southern Philippines, has already sold more than half a million pairs of bedroom slippers, children’s footwear and similar items since she started her footwear business.

“I never stopped working,” says Parilla, also marketing research officer of the Pambansang Kalipunan ng mga Manggagawang Impormal sa Pilipinas (Patamaba, or National Network of Informal Workers), with a membership of more than 13,000 women home makers in 34 Philippine provinces.

Parilla beams when recalling her heyday in footwear. “Modesty aside, I was the first to introduce the personalized touch in the market,” she says, referring to a popular marketing strategy of giving customers the choice to have their names embroidered or printed in their bought item immediately.

Parilla was into ‘personalizing’ her footwear as early as 1988, an innovation which made her the main feature in an issue of a popular women’s magazine in the 1990s. To date, most novelty shops offer this service in almost all their items.

Parilla says she aims to reach -- even surpass -- her heyday in the footwear business in the next few years. Her experiences tell her what to do this time:“Prioritize the quality and never cease to widen your market.”

Not all buko pies are the same. And among all buko (young coconut) pies in the Los Baños-Calamba area, the one that rises above the rest is Lety’s Special Buko Pie. This was the conclusion of a “focus group discussion” which was published in the July 2002 issue of FOOD magazine. Such sweet commendations are but icing on the cake for Mrs. Lety O. Belarmino, the driving force behind Lety’s Special Buko Pie.

Having earned undergraduate units in home technology from the University of Santo Tomas, Belarmino knew her food. So in 1976, armed with two hundred pesos capital and her own secret recipe, she rented a stall along the road to UP Los Baños and began selling her buko pies to employees, faculty and visitors to the UP campus. By word of mouth, her regular clientele grew. A hurdle that must be overcome in exporting food items is shelf life. Buko pies can still be consumed within three days without refrigeration, and one week if it is stored in the refrigerator. However, while regular freezing extends shelf life (up to one month) substantially more than refrigeration, the frozen pies when reheated, come out soggy and lose the desired texture.

The answer is blast freezing. Once frozen, the buko pies can last up to 12 months. Lety’s Special Buko Pie has already acquired the blast freezing technology.

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A Nepalese woman’s story: Growing business in seed production for export market

devnet — Fri, 27 May 2016 10:29:48 +0000

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Nepal, May 2016 - A woman-run seed production company networked with ordinary women folks in the remote hills of Nepal is giving well-established seed producers and exporters tough competition. How she does it is a story she offers to share with other women working in the farms of mountain communities elsewhere.

At a global summit of women, Jamuna Kayastha made a presentation of her company’s development from a mere idea to a successful business enterprise. A teacher by profession, Jamuna extended the walls of her classroom to the communities around the typographically gifted hills of her country. With faith in the capacity of women in the communities, she nurtured her vision of a company that processes and exports vegetable, fruit and cash crop seeds.

Nepal’s natural environment, with its wide range of climate and altitude, provides seed production opportunities. Traditionally, a sector dominated by men, seed production is dominantly run by men. But Jamuna defied traditions and ventured into seed production, in cooperation with other women folks in remote hillside communities in Nepal.

The idea dawned on Jamuna when she took note of the perennial oversupply of vegetables, fruits and other cash crops that usually found their way into the market for feeds for local farm animals. Why not grow these plants for seed production for export? And why not? She started a project for teaching local community farmers new techniques in seed production, particularly hybrid varieties, and processing these for export.

Good climate, fertile soil, wide hillside areas untapped for farming, available labor and big market outside of Nepal are ingredients of a sleeping opportunity. All it takes is one person to get the idea going and make it bloom into big bucks business.

“Given the vast opportunities for seed production, the number of people living in remote areas and their need to go into livelihood activities, I picked up the challenge to create a seed industry run and managed by women,” Jamuna explained how the vision got started. A language teacher, she knows that all it takes is teaching the women folks the technology for seed production, introducing to them entrepreneurial values and opening their eyes for greater potentials as productive members of society.

“At first, people doubted my venture. In fact, people ridiculed me by saying it was impossible for a woman to go into a very tricky and troublesome business,” she related. “The hurdles were awesome because of their social dimension, but I was not discouraged. If a woman could give birth, why couldn’t a woman give birth to a business?” she explained.

From a handful of women producers, the company now has hundreds of women in 25 seed production sites all around Nepal. Nurturing the transformation from home-based farmers to new seed entrepreneurs, her company is now giving the big businesses tough competition only women can give. “I am a firm believer in women’s power to transform their lives and to take important decisions outside of the traditional role as care-givers and family nurturers. As empowered women, we now can take control of our lives and be equal partners with the men in improving the quality of life of our society,” Jamuna declared.

The great oak tree sleeps in its acorn, the saying goes. The seed of success has awakened the full potentials of big seed business for women of Nepal, thanks to a lady teacher-turned-entrepreneur, Jamuna Kayastha, for showing the way.

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Nepalese woman wins business prize, wows market at international fair

devnet — Wed, 25 Nov 2015 09:47:52 +0000

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Nepal, November 2015 - One of the top business awards given by Nepal’s business community went to a woman entrepreneur who dreamt of becoming an employee but ended up as an employer instead. Sharada Rijal, who owns and runs her company called Milan Garments, also serves on the board of WEAN (Women Entrepreneurs Association of Nepal). She bested other entrepreneurs, mostly men, for the national recognition in Nepal’s Search for Top Ten Best Entrepreneurs.

“I am honored to be selected as one of the best in the business in Nepal. Truly, an honor I share with all the women working for their rights in a society dominated by men,” she said.

“Why be an employee when I can be an employer instead? I can employ myself, for starters, then as the business grows my family, then others,” she quipped, provoking thought.

By that attitude alone, there is already the spark that makes a person suited to business. Indeed, quick thinking and bold decision making are characteristics of one who runs an enterprise. This is the measure for pitting one against others in the competitive field of business, tough and straight talk in cutting deals and keeping the wheels of production turning.

When Sharada led a business mission to the Philippines, as participant in Manila International Fair, she brought with her representative products of companies belonging to members of WEAN. Many fair visitors were impressed with the variety of items, from herbal products, gems and fashion accessories, food delicacies and crafts, including Milan Garments’ product line of pashmina shawls, stoles, jackets. She was pushing for the products of her fellow women entrepreneurs at WEAN like they were hers, more than she did her pashmina shawls.

“The clients here in the Philippines do not go for warm garments, so I had to promote more relevant items from Nepal. But garments and hats are really my line and these are destined for the west,” she explained. Very intricately woven, colored with vegetable dyes and with typical Nepalese designs, the pashmina shawls could easily be on the shelves of high priced boutiques in Manila and Hong Kong, elsewhere.

Balancing the roles of wife, mother and entrepreneur is the biggest challenge of all. She does not consider the role of wife and mother an extra burden, but rather as an inspiration that keeps her going in her business.

“While I am attending to business, half of my mind is on household matters. But somehow, I can give both a hundred percent attention. It’s not a choice between one over the other. Both are important responsibilities I have to meet.”

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Stepping up – from volunteer social work in mountain communities to the world of business

devnet — Wed, 20 May 2015 14:00:56 +0000

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The Philippines, May 2015 - Three decades ago, an earthquake devastated the northern region of the Philippines. Especially hard-hit was Baguio, the summer capital of the country. Residents of the city, as well as nearby towns in Benguet province were faced with the daunting prospect of rebuilding their homes, businesses and their lives.

“Life was especially hard during that period,” recalled Mrs. Trinidad Cayat (or Trin), a resident of La Trinidad valley (Benguet Province). “All of us were affected by the disaster. Not only was the cost of rebuilding enormous, but the people also lost their livelihood.”

Mrs. Cayat used to be a social worker. She worked with women’s groups, organizing them and teaching them skills so that women can fulfill their part in rebuilding what was lost during the earthquake. Then in 1992, the young social worker realized that one of the best ways to help women’s groups was by putting up livelihood enterprises so that employment may be generated for the women.

“The women at La Trinidad valley are very skilled. But most of them have to stay home to take care of their young children.” The skill that most of the Benguet women had—and did quite well—was that involving fiber. Indigenous skills in weaving, knitting, crochet and other fiber work were highly prized and passed on from generations.

“When we started, my husband and I really did not know anything about starting or running a business,” Trin confessed. “It really helped a lot that I was a member of a women’s organization that assisted women in these things. Somehow for me, it was easy to instruct women on matters of economic empowerment when I was a social worker. But when I finally went into business myself, it became a different story. That was when I realized how important it is, especially for micro-entrepreneurs like myself, to link up with groups that can assist individuals on the nitty-gritty of entrepreneurship.”

Trin is a member of the Tublay Women Federation, an umbrella organization of women’s associations based in Benguet Province. The federation was created by the province’s Department of Social Welfare and Development to assist women develop and pursue income-generating activities in order to help augment their families’ income. She attended various seminars and workshops on how to start and run a business, the basics of entrepreneurship, marketing and product design. She received assistance from the Design Center on how to make her products more appealing to the eye. Color is one design aspect that she carefully watcShe participated in a National Trade Fair in Manila which resulted in a foreign buyer placing an initial order of 3,000 pairs. The entrepreneur realized that there was an untapped foreign market for her products. She attended Unifem’s WINNER seminar on international trade and e-commerce. The training on e-commerce made her realize that she could offer her products to potential buyers in far places without having to spend a lot of money on fare and phone bills.

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A success story: skills training brings hope, self-worth to women in rural communities

devnet — Mon, 02 Feb 2015 10:13:13 +0000

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The Philippines, January 2015 - Busy with cross-stitch work, a group of mothers in their early twenties to late thirties engage in hush-hush talk about problems of family life and how they are coping with it. In the background, cries of babies being given nutrition care by visiting health workers distract the attention of mothers. Now and then, they cannot help but give a hand in pacifying the fretful children. Such is the scene of a typical day at the Children’s Clinic of Kasipagan, an association of mothers’ clubs in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental (Philippines).

For many women from these communities in once was land of sugar plantations, it means doing livelihood work while taking care of their little ones. Thanks to the leadership of June Villarante, the prime mover of Kasipagan, this has been made possible. Making the most of the time at home while attending to their young ones, mothers can produce something for which a market need can be identified. All it takes is the production skill to start with, and the support services to see the products through to its buyers. The latter is what June does as business manager and marketing agent of Kasipagan for the mothers/producers.

In the 1980s, sugar prices collapsed worldwide and spelled disaster for the sugar-producing provinces of Negros. Families were badly affected as the fathers/breadwinners soon found themselves without any incomes. Some of the unemployed men were able to eke out a living ferrying passengers in pedicabs, but the daily income was not enough for their families. Oftentimes, to augment the family income, the wives took jobs as laundrywomen, househelpers or caregivers in more affluent neighborhoods in the community. But such work took its toll as it kept the mothers away from their children who soon became malnourished, even sickly.

Someone suggested that some skills training be given to mothers who frequented the clinic. Since it had been established that the major cause of malnutrition in the communities was poverty, it was hoped that the mothers can gain from learning new skills, such as embroidery, and use this new skill to augment their families’ incomes.

The Clinic has fully rehabilitated around 1,000 malnourished children to date. Of the mothers who went through the skills training on hand embroidery, 300 became the core producers of Kasipagan. Most of the products we make find demand from overseas buyers. It merely shows how competitive our cross-stitched products have become. For the women who broke into entrepreneurship, this means a lot, in terms of self-worth and confidence to face the future,” June Villarante reported.

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Daila enterprises: From wellness products to organic farming in communities

devnet — Wed, 12 Nov 2014 12:17:25 +0000

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The Philippines, November 2014 - A partner organization of Women into the New Network for Entrepreneurial Reinforcement (WINNER) in the Philippines has mobilized its members in various communities in several provinces to take up and sustain organic farming practices as a way to promote healthy lifestyle, care for mother nature and sustainable agriculture.

The Daila Community Enterprises, a network of community-based livelihoods run and managed by women, has spearheaded efforts to make more people in more communities aware of the practical benefits and economic advantages from organic farming. The campaign takes the form of hands-on training at pilot demonstration farms.

Daila members have been given the training to engage in organic home gardening in order to grow plants for family use, initially, as well as for processing for their essential oils. The women use vacant spaces in their backyards to grow herbal plants as source of medicinal oils as alternative cure of common ailments and raw materials for the production of healthcare products.

The story of Daila is such a success that the combined volume of harvested herbal and medicinal plants from women-managed organic farms necessitated the processing of these herbal materials for their essential oils. Today, Daila manufactures healthcare and bodycare lotions, washes, soaps as well as natural household cleaning materials, laundry soaps, among others. Daila has gained international recognition for its product formulations from award-giving bodies in Switzerland.

The woman-leader of Daila, Ma. Aleli Pansacola, has shared her soapmaking technology and experience in organic farming with others groups, particularly in Africa, Eastern Europe and South Asia.

Asked to comment on the potentials of organic farming, Ms Pansacola said:“ The benefits are a hundred-fold. But in general, we can say healthy body and healthy earth! The economic potentials from organic farming will come when more and more people realize the importance of going organic. Our organization provides livelihood by training women in the community on the ‘herbal’ and ‘natural’ technologies. After their training, the women apply these technical skills in starting their livelihood ventures, which become part of the Daila Community Enterprises network”.

As of year 2000, the domestic organic farming industry in the Philippines was estimated at PhP 100 million. Still at its embryonic development stage, market-wise, the organic farming industry is perceived as nascent in that it only appeals to upper middle class and health-and-wellness lifestyles markets.

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Nepalese women’s enterprises seek market opportunities, deepen commitment to social responsibility

devnet — Mon, 29 Sep 2014 10:57:47 +0000

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Nepal, October 2014 - Participation in trade fairs and product expositions has been a regular activity of women in micro/small enterprises in Nepal, thus keeping them abreast of developments in the global market. This is particularly important in getting the latest information on product supply, buyers’ preferences, trends in product demands as well as requirements of emerging markets.

In cooperation with trade promotion organizations and its host organization, Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, members of the WINNER-Nepal have gained exposure to business opportunities across the South Asia region and in overseas markets. Their exposure further enhanced their commitment to grow their businesses and gain solid experience in attaining the sustainability of income streams.

Two of the latest trade fairs, in which WINNER-Nepal took part, are the International Trade Fair 2014 and Change Fusion 2014, both major trade shows were held in Kathmandu, Nepal. These two trade events drew regional visitors-buyers from across the South Asia region as well as overseas, with 3,000 visitors monitored on any single day of the six-day fair.

At the Change Fusion Nepal Fair, a unique trade event that highlights profit with social conscience (social responsibility), twenty-five members of WINNER-Nepal were given recognition for their adherence to corporate social responsibility, an international norm of conduct among modern-day companies throughout the world.

Micro and small enterprises in Nepal initially get their support to pursue their activities from non-government organizations operating in communities. Most of these enterprises are new and run by women. NGOs extend assistance to women entrepreneurs, and provide needed inputs to build women’s entrepreneurial capacity. The transition from the informal economy to the domain of mainstream business is the most crucial stage in nurturing the stability of women’s micro and small enterprises.

In Nepal, the WINNER program has in the past organized local trade fairs for the purpose of providing an opportunity to its members who do not have direct access to markets. The program has also trained a good number of start-up women entrepreneurs, with many of these capacity-building courses focusing on e-commerce, international trade and good business practices.

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From ‘women in homework’ to ‘green jobs’ in the informal economy

devnet — Tue, 09 Sep 2014 11:58:15 +0000

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The Philippines, September 2014 - From home work and child care to community responsibilities, women have expanded their reach in advocating equal opportunities for all in order to cope with the challenges of globalized markets and the speed of doing business through the Internet. In emerging economies like the Philippines, women have taken the lead in advancing the potentials of women by improving their capacity to engage in livelihood activities.

One of the partner women’s organizations of WINNER, Kababaihan Kaagapay sa Hanapbuhay-SKA INC. or KAKASAHA, has embraced the advocacy for clean, safe and sustainable environment. Aware of the need to preserve the common resource for today’s and the next generations, it has combined both advocacies of sustainable and living environment as well as wealth creation through jobs and reducing decent work deficits in the informal economy through social protection.

From being exponent of women’s economic empowerment in home work, Susanita Tesiorna has expanded her advocacy to cover all those in the informal sector of the economy throughout the Philippines. As president of Alliance of Workers in the Informal Economy/Sector (ALLWIES) and as sectoral representative in the National Anti-Poverty Commission, she has been active in championing green jobs in the informal economy. One such initiative is the e- trike project spearheaded by the Surigao City Tricycle Engawan Daniel So and Dr. Joan Lagunda, also basic sector representatives to the NAPC.

According to Ms. Tesiorna, the e-trike project is a local government and community initiative in response to the purpose of the Clean Air Act and Climate Change Adaptation. Units of e-trike are meant to replace smoke-belching, pollution-creating tricycles popular among the riding public in provincial communities and even in urban-blighted areas of cities. The e-trike project that has been launched in Surigao City is one that is worthy of total support of policy-makers in government and decision-makers in business as well as leaders in the communities. Lately, the project has caught the attention of international organizations whose mission runs along the priorities of clean air and climate change adaptation as well as jobs for sustainable livelihoods.

The e-trike is an electric tricycle with capacity of 10 passengers. The vehicle runs on rechargeable batteries (102 watts). Around 20 individuals have already acquired units of e-trike. In Surigao City, the ISDA Foundation makes the e-trike units available to interested parties at affordable prices. It also takes care of maintenance and research and development of the vehicle.

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Information communication technology keeps women in micro, small enterprises engaged in markets

devnet — Wed, 04 Jun 2014 10:32:22 +0000

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Philippines, June 2014 - A number of women in micro and small enterprises from selected developing countries across Asia have realized life-changing results from their involvement in the economic empowerment global project called WINNER.

The project has provided training courses on enterprise management, international trade practices and e-commerce as well as customized assistance to women entrepreneurs seeking business contacts outside their domestic markets.

The project called Women into the New Network for Entrepreneurial Reinforcement has received numerous letters of compliments and critical views on the project going forward to the next stage. Experience of these women-beneficiaries has been documented and compiled in a monograph prepared by DEVNET, the project execution agency.

Researchers-writers were commissioned to interview a random sampling of women-micro entrepreneurs in the local communities. Their stories gave insightful information on how they as start-up business people in their communities, grew their business ventures and used the Internet to find new markets.

Some testimonial letters received from the women-beneficiaries of the WINNER project revealed interesting breakthroughs for them in reaching distant contacts and clients. Some excerpts of these business letters are:

We have been benefited with new skills when we took part in the training organized by WINNNER in Zimbabwe. Since then we have managed to improve our business linkages though the Internet…. Now my company is doing business with a partner in India…

I am one of the rural women who took part in the e-commers training held in Mountain Province (Philippines) a couple of years ago. I remember the advice of the WINNNER trainor who encouraged me to introduce my products to the international market by using the internet and sending my product and business profiles for inclusion in electronic market place of WINNER. Indeed after several months, an importer from Australia tapped my company to supply its requirements…

My association with WINNER has provided me an opportunity to establish business contacts in Eastern Europe, particularly Bulgaria and Georgia. Later, through WINNER, I was introduced to business contacts in Ivory Coast and Ghana, with the assistance of a Dutch organization that was collaborating with WINNER.

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Filipino women bat for sustainable agriculture through research and development

Lydia — Wed, 11 Sep 2013 13:27:52 +0000

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The Philippines, August 2013 - Women in farming communities and leaders from various sectors of Philippine society recently joined an open dialogue on the role of women and their contribution in agriculture. Theme of exchange of ideas and experiences was “Women in Rice Farming”. The dialogue was one of various activities lined up for the celebration of the National Year of Rice 2013.

Among those who attended the program to share their experiences and insights were last year’s awardees in the search for outstanding women in rural development.

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) along with the Philippine Department of Agriculture and the Philippine Commission on Women have joined efforts in advancing women’s role in fighting hunger and malnutrition and promoting environmental sustainability through research and technology development and improved farming practices. Rice affects the lives of people, in particular the hundreds of millions living in rural areas around the country.

The event also showcased to members of media and representatives of civil society organizations the research and development breakthroughs of IRRI in developing rice varieties that grow well in harsh conditions. Featured was its latest rice variety called “golden rice” which has been found to be rich in beta-carotene, iron and zinc. In the Philippines, vitamin A deficiency affects approximately 1.7 million children and one out of every ten pregnant women. Golden rice variety shows a potential way to reduce malnutrition. According to the United Nations Food Agriculture Organization, women play an important role in supporting their households and communities as well as in achieving food and nutrition security. They also contribute to the local economy through their agro-enterprises.

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