The possibility of including entrepreneurship as a subject in the current senior high school curriculum is underway, said Go Negosyo chairperson Joey Concepcion following a meeting with Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte.

Concepcion discussed with the Vice President several avenues in which entrepreneurship skills can be included in the school curriculum, among them through direct mentoring by veteran entrepreneurs, and another is through the help of private companies, specifically those engaged in the agriculture sector.

"Our idea is if we open up this avenue to young people, there would be a way for them to find an alternative path to success," Concepcion said.

Under the current curriculum, Filipino children in public schools attend a minimum of 13 years under the K-12 program. An average of four more years would be added if the student decides to pursue higher education," the Go Negosyo chairman said in a statement on Thursday.

He added that not all families have the resources to support children through the completion of the entire curriculum, noting that "We could help these young people find their path, focus on it, and maybe one day the students can turn it into a business."

He said that there are many successful entrepreneurs who succeed even without the benefit of higher education.

Concepcion noted that among the possible paths that were discussed in which entrepreneurship can be incorporated into the curriculum is through proven mentoring programs that are already being implemented by Go Negosyo. One of these is through roadshows in which a successful entrepreneur is sent to mentor the students at their respective schools; another way is for students to observe actual mentoring with active and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Moreover, he said Go Negosyo has employed different methods of reaching out to potential entrepreneurs. It has conducted plenary events targeted toward women, the youth, OFWs, as well as thematic events that focus on introducing MSMEs to digital platforms and to opportunities offered by the tourism sector. During the pandemic, it ported its mentoring programs to social media and conferencing platforms, enabling it to continue mentoring entrepreneurs in the provinces and even across the ASEAN region.