By Jelly F. Musico
MANILA, March 25 (PNA) – President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday urged women entrepreneurs to continue what the country has achieved under his ‘Tuwid na Daan’ (straight path) governance.
The President made his challenge to some 5,000 sari-sari store and carinderia owners who are beneficiaries of the Sari-Sari Store Training and Access to Resources (STAR) program at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
”I have been asked: What will happen to what we have achieved through the ‘Tuwid na Daan’ after I step down in 2016? Who will continue? I have only one answer: You, women entrepreneurs, and our millions of countrymen will continue all of these. You will anchor our country towards more successes,” the President said in his speech to the delight of the women entrepreneurs.
The STAR program is a joint project of the Coca-Cola Philippines and the Technical and Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) as part of the Coca-Cola Company to economically empower five million women within its value chain by year 2020.
It aims to provide access to skills training, resources, and peer mentoring to 200,000 women sari-sari store and carinderia owners and operators all over the country by 2020.
President Aquino said he is now more inspired to work even harder in his remaining 460 days of office after the country earned the confidence of the world, positive investment grade, commendations and huge opportunities in a growing economy.
”I am now more inspired to pursue my dreams to improve further the quality of life of every Filipino. I will double my effort and sprinkle with more vigor the seeds of opportunity that we have planted,” the President said.
President Aquino likened his mother, the country’s first woman president Corazon Aquino, to Gabriela Silang who took great challenge to lead a revolution after his husband Diego Silang died.
”Under the administration of my mother, she pushed ‘affirmative action’ for women in the aspect of leadership and in our police and military. As a woman and as a leader of our country, my mother knew that Filipinas can make a big difference in molding the destiny of the Filipino people,” the President said.
President Aquino’s father, former Senator Ninoy Aquino was assassinated upon his arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport from a three-year self exile in the United States on August 21, 1983.
”My father said: ‘The first freedom is the freedom from hunger.’ And it is true: How we can enjoy the freedom we have achieved if we still have empty stomach and there is uncertainty when the next food will reach our table?,” Aquino said.
With this, the President challenged Coca-Cola to increase its 200,000 Filipina retailers target by 2020.
”At present, the STAR beneficiaries are 34,000 and this 2015 first semester, it will increase by 10,000. It is part of the Coca-Cola’s massive target of 200,000 by 2020. Of course, we will not oppose if Coca-Cola will increase its target,” the President said, drawing applause from women microentrepreneurs.
He also commended the TESDA program through the leadership of Secretary Joel Villanueva to provide more opportunity for the women to be involved in the economic development through micro entrepreneurship.
”The TESDA, under the energetic leadership of Secretary Joel Villanueva, will continue to cooperate with different sectors to open more opportunities for larger number of Filipinos,” President Aquino said.
The President cited the TESDA’s other program such as Training for Work Scholarship program wherein a Php1.3 billion fund has been allotted for training of 185,000 graduates 2010.
”Just imagine, for more than 7.15 million graduates of tech-voc programs of TESDA since 2010 up to 2014, almost 3.63 million of them were women. The government is really focused on giving opportunities to everybody,” the President said.
Villanueva said that society has come to acknowledge that apart from their traditional roles at home, women could be the success behind great businesses.
”The event aims to bolster the entrepreneurial spirit and inspire STAR scholars to scale the heights in their respective endeavors,” Villanueva said. (PNA)