Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte / October 2013 – “Teaching men and women to fish will feed them for a lifetime” – paraphrasing from the popular Chinese proverb seems most apt when illustrating the commitment of TVI Resource Development (Philippines) Inc., (TVIRD) in establishing sustainability initiatives. The copper and zinc mining company in Canatuan of this town has integrated social development programs into its business plan, rather than merely doling-out projects to the community. The company’s chosen development framework proves to be the right one. The women of Siocon can tell why.
Through its Community Relations and Development Office (CReDO), the company’s implementing department, TVIRD spearheaded a two-day organizational development (OD) training in partnership with the Coalition for Development in Sibugay (CODE-S) for different groups in Siocon.
Planning ahead
“There are a lot of organizations that TVIRD or the local government unit has (attempted to) help out but most of them do not prosper. This is probably because of the lack of strategic planning, which is one of the vital considerations in a group,” CODE-S Director Eugenio Sinoy explained. “That is why we see to it that this training answers every association’s needs,” he added.
Sinoy specifically identified the Siocon Empowered Women Federation as one with great potential to become an institution in the municipality. The federation is composed of six different women’s organizations convened and supported by TVIRD.
The members come from the different barangays of Siocon, particularly Tibangao, D’Riconalla, JP Brillantes, Poblacion, S. Arabi, Bucana, M. Francisco, Sta. Maria and S. Cabral.
“This (training) is here to guide the organizations in reaching their full potential. They need to learn the basics of handling an organization and eventually the business they are venturing into,” Sinoy said.
Microfinance for entrepreneurship
The women’s federation went through an organizational assessment as the first step of the training, which looked into the group’s strengths and weaknesses in line with the kind of business they are working on right now. Sinoy explained that the exercise aims to evaluate the competencies of the group and to teach them to become independent in their chosen field in order that their livelihood would be sustainable.
After the assessment, CODE-S conducted an onsite financial management tutorial for the group to learn about financial stability, record keeping, internal policy-making and strategic planning. They also underwent leadership and governance training in handling their association as well as addressing everyone’s concerns through regular meetings.
Currently, the women’s federation concentrates on their micro-financing program from TVIRD – one of the sustainable livelihood initiatives under the company’s Social Development and Management Program (SDMP) for host barangays in Siocon.
“TVIRD put up capital under the program so we can avail of loans at low interest to start any small business. We limit our individual loans and pay for these in three months’ time,” said federation president Beatrice Macas, explaining that the loan facility provides capital to put up sari-sari stores, vegetable gardens and the like.
Coming to fruition
Today, most of the women already have a start-up entity that is smooth sailing such as the production of various bottle-preserved products that include turmeric, soy sauce, bagoong (shrimp paste) and peanut butter – all of which are sold in the local market.
“This is something we produce on our own. We see that everyone is committed to improving her learning and augmenting her income so she will succeed in the long run,” Macas proudly shared.
“TVIRD formulated four quadrants of development under its SDMP. Embedded within each quadrant is capacity-building designed to empower the target beneficiaries thereby attaining project sustainability,” according to TVIRD Community Relations Manager Joel Alasco. This year, the company allocated Php2.5 million for capacity-building activities that include trainings for different groups in the host municipality and neighboring towns.
“We endeavor to empower women in this side of the province in a manner that capacitates them and enhances their skills and strengths for the future,” Alasco positively disclosed. “They will then serve as the benchmark for other groups,” he added.
As TVIRD in Canatuan prepares to wind down its current operations at the end of this year, the company’s commitment developing a sustainable community as well as the responsible management and protection of the environmental lives on.