BPI Foundation has formally launched ‘Sinag Spark 2021.’ Now in its seventh year, Sinag Spark is a business challenge for local social enterprises, which can best showcase their business viability and social impact. This activity is part of BPI Sinag program that is aimed at nurturing, developing, and empowering the local social enterprise sector.
The business challenge is open to Filipino social entrepreneurs, of legal age and are leading a registered social enterprise that has been operating for at least six months.
During the challenge period, 40 qualified social enterprises will be shortlisted. Of those, 20 will be chosen to move on to the contest finals. The Top 10 social enterprises will be declared BPI Sinag Spark awardees. Interested applicants can check out the complete eligibility requirements through this link. The application period is up until July 6, 2021.
BPI Foundation will provide the Sinag social enterprises with MBA-like training via virtual mentoring sessions—including guidance on business strategy and planning, marketing, operations, finance, organization and human resources development, and social innovation.
Aside from the valuable exclusive mentorship opportunities, the awardees will also be recipients of cash grants—₱300,000 for the Top 5 and ₱100,000 for the remaining five.
BPI Sinag program
“We live in a vast and complicated world and it needs our cooperation and commitment to do all we can to ensure a better and brighter tomorrow for future generations,” said BPI Foundation Executive Director Owen Camayo. “As part of our commitment, we aim to shed light and give hope—give a Spark to our struggling social enterprises who, in spite of the pandemic, continue to pledge their cooperation by focusing not just on profit, but also on people and planet.”
BPI Foundation Executive Director Owen Camayo
The BPI Sinag program was initially a business challenge for social enterprises when it was launched in 2015. Through the years, the program has evolved into a growing ecosystem with more than 180 social enterprises on its roster. It continues to bring together the country’s visionary entrepreneurs, mentors, investors, and other stakeholders who share similar goals in achieving inclusive and sustainable growth through social entrepreneurship.
In 2021, BPI Sinag is continuing its partnerships with social impact groups Bayan Academy for Social Entrepreneurship and Human Resource Development, Start-Up Village, Endeavor Philippines, and Villgro Philippines along with the microfinance unit of BPI—BPI Direct BanKo. For the first time, the program is also teaming up with Ayala Land (a subsidiary of Ayala Corporation) to further help broaden the market access of enlisted social enterprises.
New opportunities
BPI Sinag is also looking forward to new activities and initiatives lineup in the year—including the publication of a book about social entrepreneurship. “We will be publishing our second BPI Sinag Book later this year to document and share more of the best practices and inspiring stories of growth from the BPI Sinag community members,” Camayo announced.
“We will also be working on a National Social Entrepreneurship Strategy Paper to engage the public sector in supporting the development of social entrepreneurship across the country,” Camayo said. He added that through the backing of the program’s partners, case studies and impact assessments on social enterprises will be collected to serve as primary sources for crafting a national strategy for social enterprise development in the country.
Editor’s Note: The application period has been extended to July 23, 2021.
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