NGO INFORMATION SHEET 

Goal

To create a strong organization recognized by the government as the focal business service organization for small- and medium-scale enterprises needs in the City; achieve financial viability and independence; assist in creating livelihood opportunities and jobs in tourism, agro-industry, marine and aquaculture and related sectors; develop and strengthen wider working relationships with business development services providers, organizations and clientele; and advocate for policies conducive to favorable business climate.
 

Profile

The Foundation has been organized thru a resolution passed by the Palawan SMED Council on March 3, 2003 to serve as the Business Support Organization, partner of the government in implementing SME development projects in Puerto Princesa City and the province of Palawan.  It is composed of individuals of various fields of expertise both in business and the professions, people known for their vision and orientation towards development. Several own their businesses, one  is a University president, some  are heads of offices, three are bank managers, and a few are in the academe. They are united not only in desiring economic progress for the province, but also in wanting to assist the people towards this end.   These people are very supportive in the programs of the Foundation and always find time to take part in important activities like the Strategic Planning Workshop and in their meetings where they discuss the  status of their program implementation.

Prior to its organization, the Chairman who is with the Palawan Chamber of Commerce and Industry managed the operation of the Surublien Palawan Trade House since 2002.  In January this year, the management of this Trade House has been transferred to the Foundation as one of its project under SME development.

11. Areas of Coverage: Province of Palawan with focus in Puerto Princesa City which is the trade center of the province.

12. Organizational Set-up:

Capability of Staff

The staff are under the direct supervision of the Operations Manager.  They have background on micro financing, operation of a Trade House and in organizing Trainings.  They are currently managing the operation of the Surublien Palawan Trade House, have organized two (2) trainings and have started implementing the P.O. Financing program.

13.  Programs and Services

1. The Story and Composition

The conceptualization and implementation of the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia- Philippines – East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) in 1994 was meant as a microcosmic Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional economic cooperation (which was the answer to the North American Free Trade Area [NAFTA] aggregation. Both aimed at promoting regional economic unity, the ultimate objectives being the abolition of tariff barriers; free flow of investments and goods, and cooperative production ventures as possible among the member-countries. (All of them were, of course, offshoots of the European Economic Cooperation (EEC), the original and mother of all area economic cooperation concepts.)

The inclusion of Palawan as one of the participating provinces of the Philippines in the BIMP-EAGA, though primarily in tourism, created an imperative for the accelerated economic development of the province, with particular emphasis on the City of Puerto Princesa. Long relegated to the backwaters of progress on account of its geographic isolation, Palawan needs to speed up its own pace at least to achieve economic independence and self-reliance, if not parity with its neighboring provinces. Puerto Princesa City is the hub and nucleus of economic activities for mainland Palawan.

Considered as the mainspring of efforts and central strategy, is the development of small- and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) in the area, the SMEs being widely recognized as the engines of economic growth in the Philippines.
 

For Palawan, the formula of development centers on developing and strengthening a private sector clearing house of technical assistances, efforts and services, ideas and concepts, linkages and references. This formula is based on the reality that much of SMEs in the province are on the birthing and infancy stages, on cottage- and micro-scale levels, but with great potentials to grow large. They only need careful nurturing and incentives.

This has been the main concern of the Palawan Small and Medium Enterprise Development Council chaired by the Palawan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. and is  composed of representatives from both the government (DTI, DENR, DOST, DOLE, TESDA, PPDO, CPDO, PESO, OPA, PEEDO, PCSDS)  and the private sector (PNNI, FCCCI, BAP, RBAP) .  Thus, through a resolution, mutually agreed to organize an organization which will serve as the business support organization which will provide the business development services to SMEs.  The organization was named Surublien Development Foundation, Inc.

The Foundation is led by PCCI and the Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce  & Industry and is composed of individuals of various fields of expertise in the business, banking, academe, technology, information, cooperativism, people known for their vision and orientation towards development. Several own their businesses, one  is a University president, some are heads of offices, three are bank managers, and a few are in the academe. They are united not only    only in desiring economic progress for the province, but also in wanting to assist the people towards this end. If only for this, the Surublien Foundation is off to a good start.

2.   The Concept and Rationale

Essentially, the concept is for Suroblien Foundation to become a premiere or focal business service organization (BSO), rendering business development services (BDS) to its clientele. The clientele would largely be and of necessity fledgling and/or still-conceptual enterprises, whose proponents need assistance in terms of data, information, services as feasibility studies preparation, proposals, market studies, packaging design, marketing and merchandising, and others. The Foundation will not preclude, however, serving established or bigger scale clients.

The notion to serve primarily ‘new’ enterprises is that, as stated above, much of the City’s (and province’s) business enterprises are of those levels. Likewise, and more importantly, it is fledgling and starting enterprises that need assistance in the fields that the Foundation seeks to render service.

3.      The Conceptual Structure

The Suroblien Foundation intends to develop a working corporate structure that it envisions will efficiently deliver services to clients. Essentially, this structure will be composed of two divisions, the business promotions division (BPD), and the business services divisions (BSD). Each will have sections as outlined below*:

The separation of the two generic functions of the Foundation simply follows the general practice of establishing dividing lines between functions and personnel to demarcate authority and responsibility.

In the interim, each section is to be headed by one Trustee, as listed following:

4.  Projects Implemented

a.  Marketing Services -  Operates the Surublien Palawan Trade House where 40 manufacturers are given the opportunity to sell their products generating annual sales of P1.5M.

-  Acts as market integrator of products where  they establish linkage with local outlets to display  local processed foods (usually delicacies).

b.  Financing -  finance purchase order placed with  local manufacturers to help them serve the orders.  They charge a minimal fee of only 2% per month.

c.  Trainings -  organize trainings and collect fees to defray expenses.

d.  Business Information Center -  partner of  DTI-Palawan in operating the Palawan SMED Center

II. Surublien’s Corporate Spirit

1.   The Vision

Formulated as the Foundation’s Vision for Year 2006 is stated thus:

The Suroblien Development Foundation should be a fully and consistently functional, effective, efficient business service organization that integrates and packages business development services for clients; is financially viable and independent; helps create tourism-related, agro-industry, marine and aquaculture livelihood opportunities; works closely with the government, all key players and stakeholders; with established marketing and financing operations; and is dynamic and responsive to the needs of the small- and medium-scale enterprises and the community.

2.   The Mission

To realize this vision, the Foundation states its mission as:

To create a strong organization recognized by the government as the focal business service organization for small- and medium-scale enterprises needs in the City; achieve financial viability and independence; assist in creating livelihood opportunities and jobs in tourism, agro-industry, marine and aquaculture and related sectors; develop and strengthen wider working relationships with business development services providers, organizations and clientele; and advocate for policies conducive to favorable business climate.

3.   The Strategic Directions

Based on its stated Vision and Mission, the Foundation has four (4) strategic directions that it has to develop. These are:

¨      Capability-building

¨      Financial Viability and Independence

¨      Networking and Linkage

¨      Marketing and Micro Financing

a)      Capability-building

To serve its clientele, the Foundation needs to develop its own capability as well as its capacity to service. In other words, the Foundation must improve on what it can serve its clients, as well as how to serve them. As of this writing, although the Foundation’s members, on their own varied expertise, are capable personally of delivering the services it intends to render, the same members, due to the nature of their respective work, do not have the material time to do so.

Therefore, to achieve the desired levels of capability, the Foundation either must expand its staff and train them; or the members themselves perform the services; or both. For the present, the Foundation adopts the third option, with the proviso that as the resource would allow, the first option would be followed.

Thus, the Foundation intends to develop its capability to render the services of project feasibility preparation, business consultancy, training, information dissemination and data banking, micro financing management, and business events management. The development efforts would be done either as need arises or as resources allow.

b)      Financial Viability and Independence

At present the Foundation is initially dependent on the largesse of the City government. It is imperative, therefore, that the Foundation open or create new sources of financial support.

Again, this may be done several ways: expand the trade houses to generate better incomes; organize to profit from business events; solicit grants from outside donor organizations; expand the membership and impose nominal monthly or annual dues on its members; or market its services to paying clients (fee-based BDS delivery). The Foundation would use all avenues singly or in combination as opportunities present themselves.

c)      Networking and Linkage

To perform data banking services, information must be gathered. To render services, clients must be found. To match production and market, both must be discovered and cultivated. To do all these and more, the Foundation must establish networks and linkages: of sources, clients, partners, markets, producers, and others. The Foundation intends to have all in time.

d)      Marketing and Micro financing

The Foundation’s marketing efforts will target two different objectives. The first is institutional marketing, i.e., the promotion of the Foundation itself as BDS provider and BSO.  The second is the more normal marketing services, selling clients’ products through the trade houses and business events such as fairs and selling missions.

Micro financing means the Foundation should have capital to lend to clients at nominal interest, both to help the client as well as for the Foundation to earn a little income.

4.    Business Description

The Surublien Development Foundation, Inc. offers full services such as :

a. Business Consultancy

b. Project Feasibility Study Preparation

c. Livelihood Training & Entrepreneurship

d. Information Dissemination & Data Banking

e. Micro Financing Management (Tulong sa Negosyo Program)

f. Business Events Management