With free entrepreneurship training given to more than 3,000 scholars, and mentorship to almost 2,000 entrepreneurs, the CMDC continues to blaze the trail in nurturing the growth, and harnessing the potential of, Pinoy microentrepreneurs.
CMDC endeavors to bring its microentrepreneurship programs across Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao; and extend its services to entrepreneurs regardless of age, gender, or disability.
Borne from the lack of proper education and training on the basics of enterprise management for microentrepreneurs, the CMDC was established in 2011 as an entrepreneurship and management capability building course. It sought to help microentrepreneurs grow their business and professionalize their enterprise in order to achieve profitability and productivity.
It seeks mainly to give participants knowledge on enterprise development as they face the challenges of expanding and growing their businesses, through its main programs: Grassroots Entrepreneurship and Management (GEM) program, and Citi-Small Business Advisory and Coaching Services (Citi-SBACS).
The focus of the GEM program is on teaching the various facets of enterprise management, while the Citi-SBACS was established as a business clinic and advisory center that provides coaching and mentoring services.
Both GEM and Citi-SBACS have helped in developing Filipino microenterprises achieve sustainable growth. It has also provided an equal chance of opportunity to all aspiring microentrepreneurs, regardless of age, nationality, gender, or disability. The CMDC removes barriers, and consequently opens up more doors for economic growth most especially for women, persons with disability (PWD), and senior citizens.
This primary thrust of CMDC supports the United Nations’ Sustainable Goal 10 (SDG 10): Reduced Inequalities. There are 17 SDGs in all, and these have been adopted by all UN Member States, per the UNDP, “as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030.”
Reducing inequality and ensuring the inclusion of all – regardless of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, or economic or other status – is at the heart of the pledge that “no one will be left behind”.
Apart from giving equal opportunity to the vulnerable sectors, it is also largely aimed at bridging wage gaps, and ensuring that small enterprises have as much earning opportunities as big businesses.
Together with its partners Bayan Academy, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Negosyo Centers, and microfinance institutions and cooperatives, the CMDC continues to move forward, helping strengthen the country's economy through the advancement of capable, empowered microentrepreneurs.
Article from CMDC Newsletter Volume IV | Issue No. 4 | August 2019