My Right Hand Man, Sesenio
21 March 2010 at 19:24 Anna 2 comments
Anna Cleal, KF10, Philippines
It is becoming increasingly obvious to me, living here in the Philippines, that SO often money does not go into the right hands. The two main shopping malls on the island of Bohol are owned by wealthy Chinese business men. Chain stores like Chow King, McDonalds, and Jollibee are filled with customers. When you ask people what they do in the weekend the common answer is “malling” or window shopping. Malls are synonymous with air conditioning. Air con means escaping the heat. Less people shop in the open markets and side of the road stalls. More people are drawn into the big chain stores.
And so the story goes, and it’s an old one, the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. ENTER: Microfinance!
Microfinance is the “Robin Hood” of this scenario, robbing from the rich and giving to the poor. The best thing is, that in the world of microfinance, Robin (aka Kiva) doesn’t need to steal, he simply asks anyone with a heart to lend $25. It’s too easy!
And now, people with hearts, I’d like to introduce to you Sesenio Jr. Sereno – the right man for your money! Sesenio is nearing the close of his loan on Kiva and is yet to be funded. Why? This is because he is asking for a $1100 loan, larger than most loans that go to Philippines clients. He is part of a new loan product offered by my microfinance institute Community Economic Ventures, Inc (CEVI) called the ASENSO loan (Asenso meaning developing). It is offered to clients who have been with CEVI in the early stages of their business when they needed just $200 to advance. However, CEVI also want to support these clients as they continue to expand their businesses beyond what they ever dreamed they could be. So, what I want to reiterate to you, is that while this is a large loan, it’s STILL going to the RIGHT person. Please watch the video below if you are new to this game and jump online to support Sesenio.
Hopefully by the time you read this blog Sesenio will already be funded. If this is the case please support someone else from Community Economic Ventures, Inc (CEVI).
Entry filed under: blogsherpa, Community Economic Ventures (CEVI), KF10 (Kiva Fellows 10th Class), Philippines. Tags: Community Economic Ventures, Kiva, microfinance, Philippines.
1. Mary Riedel | 23 March 2010 at 19:52
Totally interesting to think about this debate – thanks for writing about it – it used to bother me too – Save More (a chain in Luzon) even sells apartments! I wish the “love” (money) was shared a bit more too! I also see Eva’s point – these malls start to pave the way for future development – someone is always first.
2. evacwu | 23 March 2010 at 16:19
It’s interesting how you mentioned the wealthy Chinese businessmen. As a Taiwanese person, this was something that I struggled with while I was in the Philippines. It wasn’t until I visited Manila that I appreciated the long intertwined history of Chinese Filipinos (or Tsinoys) in the Philippines – Tsinoys were not only segregated by the Spanish during the occupation, but massacred multiple times. Despite that, Tsinoy businessmen became an integral, active part of the Philippine economy and as you pointed out, have remained so to date. (I also vaguely remember skimming the Bahay Tsinoy / Filipino-Chinese Museum pamphlet and noting that Tsinoys set up some of the first sari-sari stores
)
Not to get all historical here (I just found the above interesting food for thought), but the main point that I wanted to make is that there is a flip side to having big malls. Even though the wealth from those big business ventures is concentrated in a few hands, they still provide employment and economic development. Sloane (KF8) wrote a great blog post about this while she was working with ASHI: http://fellowsblog.kiva.org/2009/08/10/a-road-is-paved-a-mall-opens/
But it’s great to hear about the ASENSO loans offered by CEVI, because I definitely think that borrowers who’ve demonstrated themselves to be responsible payers NEED large infusions of capital to be able to really grow their businesses to big, vibrant enterprises. So it’s exciting to see that Sesenio’s loan was funded on Kiva, and Hopefully we’ll get to hear more updates about Sesenio and his business going forward