THE true success in eradicating poverty is to develop the young generation of Filipinos to be job generators rather than job seekers.
Dr. Jaime Aristotle Alip, founder of Card Mutually Reinforcing Institutions (Card MRI), said that entrepreneurship courses are a strong force in their campuses at Card MRI Development Institute Inc. as it trains students to unleash their entrepreneurial spirit.
“We’re developing graduates not to be job seekers but to be job generators,” he said.
According to Alip, if one becomes an entrepreneur rather than an employee, he or she creates opportunities for others to land jobs, thereby increasing the purchasing power in the economy. He added that honing their entrepreneurial skills while still young also benefits them as they become their own bosses, make big decisions for themselves and even inspire others to also become entrepreneurs.
At present, Card MRI Development Institute has presence in Luzon specifically in Laguna and in Mindanao in Tagum City, Davao. Alip said they are eyeing a location for their Cebu campus as part of the planned school expansion.
Card MRI Development Institute offers degrees in entrepreneurship, information technology, and management accounting.
Encouraging entrepreneurship
Speaking during the Open Collaboration with East Asian Networks (Ocean) Summit last Nov. 9, Alip said their bank helps eradicate poverty by providing capital to micro and small business owners as well as to aspiring entrepreneurs. He encouraged more millennials to start their own businesses.
Alip, together with Card MRI clients, who are “indiepreneurs”, received the Elevating Homegrown Innovation Award during the summit.
“Our country needs young entrepreneurs who don’t seek for jobs and instead generate jobs once they expand,” he said.
“Indiepreneur” is a term coined from indie for independent or homegrown and entrepreneur.
Card MRI Development Institute Inc. started as a unit under Card Inc. in 1989. The school handles the training and educational needs of clients, staff and even outside microfinance institutions.
The facility is said to complement the member banks’ services, as it offers credit with education and livelihood trainings to clients.
Card MRI offers microloans to support the livelihood activities of poor women and initiates lendee community programs in education, health and agriculture.
It was founded on Dec. 10, 1986 as a social development organization and is now an established “indiepreneur” and the country’s microfinance leader in eradicating poverty. (JOB)