Today, President Marcos Jr. leaves for his state visit to India. The world’s fourth-largest economy has been an important trade partner of the Philippines for centuries. Our ties to India run deeper than current trade figures show, and the cultural ties go even deeper.

I think the Philippines and India have a lot in common. Their micro retail sector is alive and well, despite the many challenges to it by “organized” retail in the form of supermarkets and e-commerce stores. And very much like our own sari-sari stores, these small businesses have learned to adapt; sadly, like our own micro and small entrepreneurs, they face the challenge of professionalizing (i.e. they need mentorship in basic business practices) and access to capital. The wide-reaching influence of this vibrant sector of the economy, however, cannot be underestimated. So it was significant when, in 2018, the Government of India recognized our efforts here in the Philippines to grow the MSME sector.

I am still deeply honored to be one of only 133 people so far to have received the Padma Shri Award, one of India’s highest civilian honors. Imagine the thrill of having then Indian President Ram Nath Kovind confer the awards at India’s Presidential Palace, in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It was a very high-level gathering, held on India’s Republic Day, with other awardees, Cabinet members, colleagues, dignitaries and, of course, my wife Marissa, in attendance.

The Government of India’s recognition of our advocacy in mentoring budding entrepreneurs as a means to achieve inclusive growth and development was nothing short of invigorating, spurring me on to push for these advocacies for 20 years now.

As I said back in 2018 when I was conferred this honor, the Padma Shri Award is not my award; it just reinforces that we have been on the right track… And now with President Marcos Jr.’s pronouncements at his fourth State of the Nation Address last Monday, I am in no doubt that MSMEs will be the engine of growth for the Philippines.

He said that livelihood is the solution to poverty and our weapon against hunger. I couldn’t agree more. MSMEs account for more than half of the jobs generated in the Philippines; that there are more jobs now for Filipinos, at the same time that we have had a supportive government that tries to create a fertile environment for MSMEs, is no coincidence. Micro, small and medium enterprises should have a bigger role for prosperity to be felt by all. The only way to do that is for us to scale up our MSMEs. This is how we can have a more inclusive economy and create even more jobs for Filipinos.

We have been working with agencies like the DTI, the DOLE, the DOT and the DSWD to find ways to help Filipinos start their small businesses. The DTI, especially, has been our long-time partner in our most important programs like the KMME and the 3M on Wheels. In partnership with DTI and the private sector, we’ve been pushing really hard on our programs to bring the micro-entrepreneurs and business mentors together. It’s a challenging sector, but we’ve been trying to help these people rise above poverty and make their business models more relevant.

A welcome bonus was that the First Lady herself became a partner when she opened her LAB for All social and medical services caravan to Go Negosyo. When the government and the private sector team up to scale micro entrepreneurs to become small, the small to become medium and the medium to become large, then our economy will grow much faster.

The target is clear: help the 2.5 million poor Filipino households become entrepreneurs. The President also emphasized the need to give them access to capital and training (incidentally, two of the three M’s – money and mentoring – that form the pillar of our advocacy at Go Negosyo, the remaining M being Market). Digital technology has added a new dimension to these pillars. We are now teaching micro and small entrepreneurs how to become influencers and content creators to be able to promote their products or services through social media. Digital finance tools have already made it easier for micro entrepreneurs to access loans and transact with more people.

Another message is for the private sector to invest in agriculture. I am happy to report that agriculture is one of our priority programs, and we’ve even expanded it to the regional level, where even the private sectors of our ASEAN neighbors can cooperate and invest in each other’s agribusinesses. We will create a region of agripreneurs to achieve food security for our citizens.

Our own army of Big Brothers, comprising conglomerates and large businesses here in the Philippines, have been helping us mentor MSMEs by volunteering at our public entrepreneurship events. Some of them have even welcomed senior high school students from public schools into their boardrooms via our Youthpreneur program to spark in young minds the drive and ambition to become leaders in Philippine business.

The next three years will be focused on improving the lives of the Filipinos. The President has already called on business to invest in the Filipino. To the international community, he said that the Philippines is ready. The private sector is also ready to respond.

The President said the good economic numbers mean nothing if we fail to make life easier for our countrymen. In his words, “Ang lahat ng ito ay palamuti lamang, walang saysay, kung ang ating kababayan naman ay hirap pa rin at nabibigatan sa kanilang buhay.” This is what inclusive prosperity is all about. No one should be left behind.

Originally Published in Philippine Star