Maybank pours P107M into ASEAN PWD program

Maybank Foundation is setting aside the equivalent of P107 million under the first phase of a five-year program specifically helping the entrepreneurial initiatives of persons with disability (PWD) in 17,000 communities across Southeast Asia.

The corporate social responsibility arm of the Malaysia-based universal bank said the initial funding for the second run of its economic empowerment program, or Reach Independence & Sustainable Entrepreneurship (R.I.S.E) 2.0, will cater to communities in four Southeast Asian countries including Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Laos.

Eventually, it will extend to Singapore and Myanmar with the goal of reaching 17,000 communities by 2023. The first phase of R.I.S.E 2.0 will run from its launching on 26 September to 2020.

R.I.S.E 2.0, which does not require loans from the participants, aims to support disadvantaged communities through workshops on entrepreneurial and financial training, exposure to business strategies and mentorship.

The first R.I.S.E. program which ran from 2014 to 2019 engaged 6,358 participants in the four countries, with 1,292 participants coming from the Philippines. According to Maybank Foundation chief executive officer Shahril Azuar Jimin said, the cost of implementing the pilot run totaled P250 million.

“R.I.S.E. 2.0 will predominantly focus on helping and nurturing PWD to compete in a sustainable manner in the current age of digitalization,” he said.

“In ensuring the PWD continue to benefit under R.I.S.E. 2.0, Maybank will reach out to the under banked communities from rural areas to improve their banking access to banking services. This is part of the bank’s mission to humanize financial services by supporting local business growth as well as strengthen financial inclusion in the ASEAN.”

Here, Maybank delivers the program by tapping the Department of Social Welfare and Development as well as non-government organizations for support in identifying the communities seen to benefit from the R.I.S.E.

In its first run, Maybank said it allocated about P40 million for the program’s implementation in the Philippines, primary in communities in Manila, Iloilo and Davao.

Since the its launching in June 2017, Maybank said the average income of the top 40 percent participants in the Philippines has increased 565 percent, or from P1,666.86 to P9,418.61.