A Pledge of Commitment for sustainable social enterprises: Pass a Law on Social Enterprises!

Imagining a Pledge

We, the conveners, partners, and participants of the Bicol Regional Social Enterprises Summit, have come together today, November 28, 2024, to unite for the noble and urgent goal of building and developing social enterprises in the region with the poor as the primary stakeholders through innovation, scientific research, community organizing, people-centered development, education, and training.

We come together to express support for social enterprises’ development of sustainability, which will better contribute to social change and achieve economic resilience.

Social enterprises are innovative and effective agents in poverty reduction that contribute to promoting cohesive communities. Building and strengthening social enterprises is crucial for everyone whose primary purpose is to improve the lives of poor and vulnerable communities while promoting sustainable, climate-friendly, and socially responsible products.

We know that Bicol is a poor region made poorer by the consistency of disasters that wreak havoc on communities and enterprises 10-20 times a year. The devastation wrought by super typhoon Kristine and Pepito in quick succession this year is evident that rescuing people, their homes, and communities, and in the case of social enterprises primarily centered on the poor to alleviate and uplift themselves from poverty, becomes more urgent and compelling today.

Therefore, we also come together to bring to the fore our deep concern over Bicol’s growing vulnerability to natural disasters like the recent devastation of super typhoon Kristine and Pepito, aggravated by other disruptive artificial interventions disproportionately impacting the poor and the marginalized but also increasingly hurting other sectors, such as access to clean air, food, water, and health. Climate change is a significant problem today, and its effects are worsening.

These growing disaster vulnerabilities are undeniable evidence of the harmful effects of climate change worldwide. Everyone suffers from biodiversity loss, land and ocean degradation, pollution, resource depletion, and climate change accelerating at an unprecedented rate. This acceleration is causing irreversible harm to our life support systems and aggravating poverty and inequalities as well as hunger and malnutrition.

We are amazed at how new knowledge and technology have expanded. The number of enterprises has grown significantly over time, but with recession and joblessness, more and more people remain deep in poverty and marginalized. Social conditions have not changed substantively, but the need for access, sustainability, and resilience is now more pressing, especially with the adverse effects of climate change.

We therefore pledge to:

1. Consciously promote sustainability and resilience in all our collective endeavors as social entrepreneurs.

2. Support and realize the 15 ACTION POINTS enunciated by Tabang Bikol Movement as a form of climate adaptation and concrete action

3. Support and help call on our legislators to pass the Poverty Reduction Through Social Entrepreneurship (PRESENT) with the poor as the primary stakeholders and promote social entrepreneurship integrated with substantive and strategic climate action measures.

4. Encourage more technological innovations and scientific research designed to improve social well-being within entrepreneurial organizations that contribute to social change.

5. Increase our engagement in social innovation as individuals, groups, and professionals in business, government, church, and other institutions in whatever role and function we have in society and the world.

6. Provide financial, non-financial, and moral support and assistancet to social innovators and social enterprises.

7. Patronize, support, assist, and buy local and indigenous products and services because social entrepreneurs in poor countries like the Philippines do not have access to funds or capabilities to invest in environmentally friendly business practices and products.

8. To make Sustainable Social Entrepreneurship for poverty reduction and disaster mitigation as twin goals be made a conscious part and institutionalized as part of learning in schools and communities toward economic resilience.

We believe transformative change is needed: we cannot continue as before.

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The conveners of the Regional Social Enterprises Summit are Mariners Polytechnic Colleges Foundation (MPCF), Central Bicol State University in Agriculture (CBSUA), Bicol University (BU), Naga College Foundation (NCF), Bicol State College of Applied Sciences and Technology (BISCAST) with Tabang Bikol Movement that spearheaded social entrepreneurship in Canaman, Camarines Sur with community based people’s organizations after Typhoon Nina in 2016. Providing significant support is a two-year Social Enterprises Development Project (SEDP) of the MPCF with the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) Central Office which ends in December 2024 and the Archdiocese of Caceres. Alongside is the partnership with the Regional Development Council whose NGA members - DTI, DepED, DA, DSWD, DoST, NEDA, DoLE - and the business sector - the MNCCII and CSCCII, Bicol Mail and DWNX/RMN- have become partners as well. The spirit of volunteerism and people-centered development guided this active collaboration. Summit is November 28-29 at the VISTA MALL Naga along Maharlika Highway, Naga City