A taste of home
By Tina Arceo-Dumlao
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: June 05, 2010
SINCE THE hordes of Filipinos working or living overseas have turned into an exact science the practice of bringing local goods and delicacies back to their host countries, why not make them earn from selling them, too?
That desire to provide Filipinos overseas with such an opportunity to make an extra income gave birth to the Pinoy Agri-Kart program of the Department of Agriculture.
Inspired by the iconic Philippine jeepney, the Pinoy Agri-Kart features traditional products such as coffee, native chocolate and chicharon as well as new offerings such as flavored lambanog, malunggay noodles and organic cosmetics, which promise to be surefire hits among Filipinos yearning for the taste and feel of home.
For an investment of just P175,000, OFWs and other entrepreneurs interested in promoting and selling proudly Philippine-made products will get the specially designed kart, initial inventory of elegantly packaged goods worth P40,000, security deposit and even some marketing materials and the franchise fee for the first year.
Where to invest
On the second and third years of the contract, the investor will shell out an annual fee of roughly P50,000 for the right to operate the Pinoy Agri-Kart.
The Pinoy Agri-Kart has done the rounds of food and agriculture events here and abroad since it was launched in May 2009 and a sample Pinoy Agri-Kart is now on permanent display at the Duty Free Shop in Manila and in the popular tourist destination of Loboc in Bohol to give OFWs as well as international tourists and local travelers an idea of where to invest their hard-earned money.
There are also Pinoy Agri-Karts on display in the Philippine trade office in Shanghai, the Philippine embassy in Xiamen, the 7101 Flavors restaurant in Singapore to promote the business concept among Filipinos there.
The DA has also struck an agreement with the Manila International Airport Authority to set up a Pinoy Agri-Kart at Terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Authority, one of the country’s busiest gateways.
Helping OFWs
According to former Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap, who came up with the Pinoy Agri-Kart concept, the department saw it fit to develop the social franchising scheme to help entrepreneurs –primarily OFWs – maximize the potential of their earnings.
Yap tells SundayBiz in an interview that there have been too many stories of OFWs losing their precious money to frivolous purchases, ill-advised business ventures or get-rich-quick schemes, so the DA decided to present them with a viable business option.
With the Pinoy Agri-Kart, Yap says OFWs will get to invest in a real business based on products they are familiar with. And they do not have to worry too much about getting a market because they will primarily be selling to their fellow Filipinos overseas.
Yap estimates that investors will start realizing a handsome profit as soon as eight months after the Pinoy Agri-Kart is set up in high-traffic areas such as malls or in centers abroad where Filipinos usually congregate.
And there are as many opportunities to make money within local shores, too, as Filipinos around the country are also looking for something new and exciting to spend their money on.
Good for home folks
This is an ideal arrangement for OFWs who have decided to stay home and with money and time on their hands to nurture a fledgling business that helps mostly small- and medium-scale entrepreneurs –mainly from the countryside – find that vital market for their unique products, which were developed or enhanced with the help of the DA.
The Pinoy Agri-Kart program falls under the Agribusiness Exports Showroom project, which was opened in 2007 at the DA head office in Quezon City to showcase food and agriculture-based products and link local and foreign buyers with local suppliers and processors.
In 2008, the showroom was placed under the Philippine Agricultural Development and Commercial Corp., the agribusiness investments promotion and marketing corporate arm of the DA and since then, growth has skyrocketed.
From 25 to over 1,000
From 25 export products, the showroom now showcases 1,053 products from snack food to health and wellness products and handicrafts – some of which will be sold through the Pinoy Agri-Kart.
“We think of the AES as an incubation center where the entrepreneurs can immediately get feedback from the market on their price, quality and labeling. Based on that feedback, they can immediately adjust and we help them by getting them in touch with experts on standards and packaging to improve sales,” says Minky Alba, who manages the showroom.
From just P30,000 a month in gross receipts in 2007, sales have ballooned to P300,000 a month.
“More than the sales, the impact has been on the increase in the market for the entrepreneurs or the improvement in their products so they can sell more Filipino goods here and abroad,” adds PADCC chief Marriz Agbon.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Monday, June 7, 2010
Nation honors OFWs
THE NATION PAYS TRIBUTE to the Overseas Filipino Worker Sunday, Migrant Worker’s Day or Araw ng Pasasalamat, with festivities honoring some 40,000 OFWs and their families in 17 regions of the country.
The event acknowledges the social and economic advancement of OFW families as well as of the country, according to Administrator Carmelita S. Dimzon of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa).
“The celebration,” Dimzon said, “serves as an avenue for the government and its social partners to express their gratitude to all OFWs.”
The simultaneous festivities nationwide will feature entertainment, gift-giving and games for the enjoyment of OFWs and their families.
In the National Capital Region, Labor Secretary Marianito D. Roque will lead the festivities at the Ninoy Aquino Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Roque, Dimzon and a representative of sponsor Globe Telecoms will hand out awards to outstanding land-based and sea-based OFWs, financially and physically challenged OFWs, and the most senior OFW in attendance.
This year’s theme is “OFWs: Tagumpay sa Hamon ng Panahon, Kaagapay sa Pagsulong.”
Globe is the major sponsor with partners Banco de Oro-SM Supermalls, Land Bank of the Philippines, Duty-Free Philippines and Cebu Pacific Air.- Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 05, 2010
The event acknowledges the social and economic advancement of OFW families as well as of the country, according to Administrator Carmelita S. Dimzon of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa).
“The celebration,” Dimzon said, “serves as an avenue for the government and its social partners to express their gratitude to all OFWs.”
The simultaneous festivities nationwide will feature entertainment, gift-giving and games for the enjoyment of OFWs and their families.
In the National Capital Region, Labor Secretary Marianito D. Roque will lead the festivities at the Ninoy Aquino Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Roque, Dimzon and a representative of sponsor Globe Telecoms will hand out awards to outstanding land-based and sea-based OFWs, financially and physically challenged OFWs, and the most senior OFW in attendance.
This year’s theme is “OFWs: Tagumpay sa Hamon ng Panahon, Kaagapay sa Pagsulong.”
Globe is the major sponsor with partners Banco de Oro-SM Supermalls, Land Bank of the Philippines, Duty-Free Philippines and Cebu Pacific Air.- Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 05, 2010
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Money Smarts: What OFWs need to do
By Karen Galarpe on November 13, 2009 5:44 PM
Inquirer Blogs
WHILE ON a recent trip to Japan, I heard a story about an OFW driver who nearly wasted away his earnings. He worked in Japan for close to 30 years, and at one point was earning an equivalent of P400,000 a month with overtime pay. He had a wife and child back home in the Philippines and was able to send his child to school. However, he was always out drinking at bars in expensive Tokyo while having several relationships with other women. "Puro good time," they say.
Well the guy wasn’t able to hold on to his job due to his drinking problem. His employer asked him to resign, and he was given an equivalent of P2 million as separation pay.
His Filipino friends could only shake their heads in disbelief at how he wasted away the opportunity to have a well-paying job, and how he was not able to save any money to make his life better. Last they heard, he was back home, bought himself a tricycle which he drives for a living, and is staying with his parents since he could not afford to buy a house of his own.
Filipinos who leave the country to work overseas do so to earn more money in order to help support their families back home. However, not every OFW gets to lay out a stable financial future.
The problem, says Raul D. Dimayuga, senior vice-president and head of the global remittance division of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, is €œinitially a lack of awareness of what to do. For many of [OFWs], it is the first time that they are able to receive a larger amount of money than what they used to and if they are not properly advised, they would tend to use the funds for consumption.
This is why BPI has embarked on providing a financial literacy program to its clients, especially OFWs and their beneficiaries. It has conducted the BPInoy Learning Series caravans in Iloilo, Cavite, Dumaguete, Davao, and most recently, in Cebu, and Cagayan de Oro, among others. The series seeks to show that financial control is possible even away from home. By using interactive modules, participants are taught how to save, invest and make use of available technology to do banking transactions. BPI services and products designed specifically for the global Filipino are also introduced, such as the BPInoy Remittance, BPInoy Savings Account, BPInoy Save-up (build up savings account with free life insurance), BPInoy loan products, and Credit Card.
Dimayuga says these are the basics that an OFW must have to be on the road to financial stability:
1. An account for himself separate from that of his beneficiary. €œThis way he is able to segregate his savings from his transactional account, i.e., funds needed by his beneficiary for day-to-day expenses.
2. A plan for himself in terms of how much to save and set aside as budget for the family expenses which he agrees on with his beneficiary. €œThis way his plans are aligned with that of his family and the road to financial stability becomes a family affair. Ideally, he should be saving between 10 to 20 percent of his monthly income.
3. An investment plan.
€œOverseas Filipinos contribute substantially to our country'€™s growing economy. As a bank, we want to provide financial education to empower our global Filipinos to fulfill their dreams that fueled their decision to go abroad, adds Teresita B. Tan, head of overseas banking and channel services group of BPI.
Inquirer Blogs
WHILE ON a recent trip to Japan, I heard a story about an OFW driver who nearly wasted away his earnings. He worked in Japan for close to 30 years, and at one point was earning an equivalent of P400,000 a month with overtime pay. He had a wife and child back home in the Philippines and was able to send his child to school. However, he was always out drinking at bars in expensive Tokyo while having several relationships with other women. "Puro good time," they say.
Well the guy wasn’t able to hold on to his job due to his drinking problem. His employer asked him to resign, and he was given an equivalent of P2 million as separation pay.
His Filipino friends could only shake their heads in disbelief at how he wasted away the opportunity to have a well-paying job, and how he was not able to save any money to make his life better. Last they heard, he was back home, bought himself a tricycle which he drives for a living, and is staying with his parents since he could not afford to buy a house of his own.
Filipinos who leave the country to work overseas do so to earn more money in order to help support their families back home. However, not every OFW gets to lay out a stable financial future.
The problem, says Raul D. Dimayuga, senior vice-president and head of the global remittance division of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, is €œinitially a lack of awareness of what to do. For many of [OFWs], it is the first time that they are able to receive a larger amount of money than what they used to and if they are not properly advised, they would tend to use the funds for consumption.
This is why BPI has embarked on providing a financial literacy program to its clients, especially OFWs and their beneficiaries. It has conducted the BPInoy Learning Series caravans in Iloilo, Cavite, Dumaguete, Davao, and most recently, in Cebu, and Cagayan de Oro, among others. The series seeks to show that financial control is possible even away from home. By using interactive modules, participants are taught how to save, invest and make use of available technology to do banking transactions. BPI services and products designed specifically for the global Filipino are also introduced, such as the BPInoy Remittance, BPInoy Savings Account, BPInoy Save-up (build up savings account with free life insurance), BPInoy loan products, and Credit Card.
Dimayuga says these are the basics that an OFW must have to be on the road to financial stability:
1. An account for himself separate from that of his beneficiary. €œThis way he is able to segregate his savings from his transactional account, i.e., funds needed by his beneficiary for day-to-day expenses.
2. A plan for himself in terms of how much to save and set aside as budget for the family expenses which he agrees on with his beneficiary. €œThis way his plans are aligned with that of his family and the road to financial stability becomes a family affair. Ideally, he should be saving between 10 to 20 percent of his monthly income.
3. An investment plan.
€œOverseas Filipinos contribute substantially to our country'€™s growing economy. As a bank, we want to provide financial education to empower our global Filipinos to fulfill their dreams that fueled their decision to go abroad, adds Teresita B. Tan, head of overseas banking and channel services group of BPI.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
