Philippines

 In the Philippines, PFI also provided livelihood skills training activities to its beneficiaries to promote self-reliance. They also help the beneficiaries in marketing of their products as a result from the training.

Community organizing in the urban poor is a challenging job. For PFI, they started in 2011 with a community that they organized into one federation (Duljo Integrated Neighborhood Association -DINA) which comprises 7 member organizations. PFI strengthened the federation and the four old people organizations formed in 2008 with a set of functioning leaders and participating members. They were organized into various committees to address and mobilize around their varouis socio-economic needs.

Decent shelter is a basic human right. It instills the value of human dignity to the beneficiaries and will encourage them to strive harder. In partnership with SELAVIP, Pagtambayayong - A Foundation for Mutual Aid, Inc. (PFI) is one our partner assisting five peoples organizations comprising 775 urban poor families in the coastal slums of Cebu City to acquire their own house. Some beneficiaries are the victims of fire that gutted their homes others are squatters living in very poor housing.

Community organization and formation of associations or cooperatives are two significant activities in this component. One structures are formed, they are then registered to accrediting institutions of the government such as the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) as cooperatives; the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) as rural associations; and/or at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Six partners of DISOP Philippines implement their projects in the forest and lowland areas while three others are in the coastal and marine environment.

Agricultural, marine and other rural employment requires the technical skills training to enhance and improve the beneficiaries' enterprise. To answer the need for relevant technical skills training, our partners customized seminars that are provided to the target beneficiaries.

DISOP Phils believes that the success of the implementation of the project depends on the capability of its partners to efficiently deliver the services needed for their identified beneficiaries. Hence, a yearly technical training tailored to the needs of the partners is conducted to reinforce, enhance and build their competencies. In addition, an annual conference is also conducted as a venue for sharing  experiences and updating each other.

The FRS is an association of families, professionals and institutions that assume the responsibility of development and the promotion of rural environment. As such the associations under this project are also provided with strengthening activities to equip them of the skills needed towards managing the school and empowering them to become self-reliant. They make sure that educational system is relevant to the needs of the rural areas for development.

One of the projects of DISOP Philippines caters to the youth sector wich involves the training of the youth in a unique educational system called the Family Rural School system. Here, students learn about basic education, entrepreneurial skills and proper values that will equipe them to become productive citizens in the future. Students learn the academics in school and the practical side of it at home or at their own entreprises in an alterning cycle of pedagogy.

The foundation for Management Innovations, Inc. (FEMI, Inc.) as an organization based in the Philippines, deals with beneficiaries that have enterprises beyond the subsistence level. These are enterprises that exist for a minimum of 3 years rather than with starts-ups. These are businesses that have achieved some sort of market acceptance and survived the rigors of infancy. FEMI focuses on businesses at the level of small industries because these have far greater potential for employment generation.