Inclusive Growth Key to Peace and Prosperity in Mindanao

Wazzup Pilipinas!

An inclusive atmosphere in business is necessary to maintain the gains of peace and continue the enabling environment for prosperity in Mindanao.

This was emphasized by Dr. Annette Pelkmans-Balaoing, Escaping the Middle-Income Trap: Chains for Change (EMIT C4C) convenor, during a workshop in UP Diliman on July 12, 2019.

“In the context of conflict and war, we need markets to be humane. We need markets to be inclusive,” she said.

Pelkmans-Balaoing cited the case of Unifrutti Tropical Philippines, a firm that invested in a 1,300-hectare banana plantation called La Frutera in Maguindanao, and their relationship with the community and the farmers operating there.

Unifrutti, she said, recognized the land rights of the people in Maguindanao; it employed former rebels or combatants to build trust and establish relationships. 

“Investment usually expose you to higher risk. but in this sense, investment in the form of social capital lessens the risk in operating in a risky environment," she added.

According to Senen Bacani, chair of Peace and Equity Foundation and one of the co-founders of La Frutera, this success is due to the recognition that peace and development should always come together.

“Unifrutti went there for profit, but we believed that to do that, we needed to take care of the people, community, and environment,” he said.

Bacani further noted that cultural sensitivity matters in dealing with the social realities on the ground.

“If people trust you, they will do what you requested them to do. We always wanted to work with community leaders in the area,” he said.

Other topics such as the proposed details of a model Islamic community and logistics, and opportunities and challenges in connecting different producers and players in agriculture and urban markets in Mindanao were also discussed.

PEF is a partner in the EMIT C4C, a research program under the UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies that collaborates with the Partnerships Resource Center of the Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University), seeks to understand the conditions for enhancing the competitiveness and inclusiveness of agriculture value chains. EMIT C4C, for instance, studies how smallholder farmers are linked with mainstream companies and social enterprises.


You can view this article here: https://pef.ph/index.php/2019/07/19/inclusive-growth-key-to-peace-and-prosperity-in-mindanao/

Tanghalang Ateneo to Open 41st Season with “Dolorosa”

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Tanghalang Ateneo, the longest-running theater company of the Loyola Schools of the Ateneo de Manila University, will kick off its 41st season, “Écriture Féminine | Sulat-Babae: The Women's Season,” this August with a full-length version of “Dolorosa” at the Doreen Black Box, Arts Wing, Areté.

Multihyphenate Jenny Jamora (“33 Variations,” “Every Brilliant Thing”) will direct the material, which was originally a one-act play and part of the Virgin Labfest 14 staged readings last year.

Playwright Peter Zaragoza Mayshle, an esteemed Tanghalang Ateneo alumnus and English professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania, has expanded “Dolorosa” for this season’s opener.

In the story, a one-of-a-kind wooden statue of the Mater Dolorosa, which is a family’s prized heirloom, is put together and made whole by three siblings. They do this every year for the Holy Week procession in Paete, Laguna.

On this Maundy Thursday, they await the visit of their mother Pilar, who mysteriously abandoned them 15 years ago. When she arrives, they will confront the ghosts of their past and one shattering truth about their beloved Dolorosa statue.

“Dolorosa” will feature veteran actors Bibeth Orteza as Pilar and Ron Capinding as Mariano.

Also part of the cast are Clyde Enriquez (Elena/Claudia), Zoë de Ocampo (Pilar/Juliana), Rainbow Gutierrez (Victoria/Alicia), AJ Umali (Padre Galiano/Pablo/Tasyo), Sabrina Basilio (Chedeng/Mitring), Kat Dizon (Bernadette/Mary Seat of Wisdom), Dani Capinding (Jacinta/Mary Mystical Rose), Francesca Dela Cruz (Judiel/Mary Star of the Sea), Shaun Ocrisma (Elsa/Mary Tower of Ivory), Kim Donato (Lucia/Mary Mirror of Justice), Zarya Almocera, Nicole Chua, Darl Alba and Mekaella Mendoza (ensemble).

The artistic team is composed of production designers Ben Padero and Carlo Tabije (“Heneral Luna,” “Siargao”), movement designer Jomelle Era (“Desaparesidos”), lighting designer D Cortezano (“Desaparesidos,” “Marisol”), sound designer Arvy Dimaculangan (“Desaparesidos,” “Every Brilliant Thing”), graphic designer Zoë de Ocampo (“Alpha Kappa Omega,” “Stop Kiss”), photographer Jojit Lorenzo, vocal coaches Robin Aronson and Rachael Swartz, and dramaturg and current Ateneo Creative Writing major Elise Ofilada.

Tanghalang Ateneo, a multi-Aliw Awardee, has grown into one of the country’s leading school-based theater companies. Its repertoire of plays includes Filipino originals, world classics and documentary texts turned into theater pieces, both English and Filipino.

The play will run from August 15 to 17, 22 to 24, and 29 to 31 at 7:30 p.m. and on August 17, 24, 31 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are at 450 pesos each for ADMU students and 500 pesos each for the general public. For more information and other inquiries, contact Nicole at 0906-2662563.

Container Haulage Startup Takes Top Prize at RISE, Asia’s Largest Technology Event in Hong Kong

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Container haulage startup Haulio has been named the winner of PITCH 2019 at RISE.

PITCH, in partnership with Manulife, brings together the world’s leading early-stage startups for a live onstage battle. This year around half of the 777 startups Asia largest technology event RISE applied to be part of the competition, with 60 being selected and given the opportunity to present at the PITCH stage in front of Asia’s top investors.

From Singapore, the operating system for container haulage enables containers to move like clockwork beyond the port, saving time and resources for hauliers. It’s the simplest and most reliable way for businesses to get their containers moved. Haulio comes from PSA unboXed incubator and is now working with tens of thousands of containers in Singapore.

“Winning PITCH is validation for our business.” - said co-founder Alvin Ea. “Containers are so big but people don’t actually notice them. We’re trying to bring to the world stage something that is hidden to many people. PITCH can help bring our company to the world stage and let people know this a problem worth solving. ”

“Our speciality is in container trucks. There’s a big pain in this industry and workers are suffering silently from the inefficiencies. They just do the same thing over and over again for years and they don’t change their habits. They are so good at what they do, but it’s a profession built by early generation that don’t really understand tech. Industry leaders want to transform their business but they don’t know how. There’s not many startups in the logistics industry for cargos.”

“PITCH has helped me hone up my pitching skills. It’s a challenge to explain my business in 3 minutes! I have to bring toy trucks, as they don’t really understand the business to show them how it actually works!”