For the past 11 years, Go Negosyo has been advocating for real change in the mindset towards entrepreneurship. Back then, entrepreneurship was the last career choice Filipinos would take. But with the continued efforts of Go Negosyo and other groups, we can say that entrepreneurship is now one of the career paths taken by many.

In our mission to share the advocacy across every region, we have been traveling with our Angelpreneurs, partner mentors and entrepreneurs to conduct negosyo seminars for micro, small and aspiring entrepreneurs. Through these seminars and mentoring sessions, we were able to see the need for additional support for micro and small entrepreneurs.

When we launched the “Mentor Me” program, a business-coaching program for aspiring micro and small entrepreneurs, we aimed to assist them scale up in their businesses by aligning their mindset and equipping them with the needed skill sets by lectures and one-on-one mentoring. This is a way to encourage them to innovate and develop their products and services.

Today we will be launching “Kapatid,” an initiative of Go Negosyo and the Department of Trade and Industry that encourages medium and large corporations, or “Big Brothers,” to help micro and small enterprises (MSEs), or “Small Brothers,” through the use of Inclusive Business (IB) models. This is in support of the 10-point economic agenda of the Duterte administration.

In the process of the Kapatid rollout, MSEs will be partnered with medium and large enterprises to develop industries as part of their value chain. To enable MSEs to supply goods and services that meet the required standards of medium and large enterprises and to eventually sustain the enterprise on their own, adequate capacity building will have to be provided.

With Kapatid, we are now building a network of different players in the value chain. With the different partners around, Go Negosyo, now acts as an accelerator that will encourage innovation, communication and collaboration among government agencies and private institutions that will direct efforts towards MSME development. Together, we can all create an enabling environment that creates a stronger entrepreneurship culture.

Let me share with you the real-life stories of some micro-entrepreneurs we interviewed.