There’s an old saw that says, “A mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.” In a Filipino household, the role being played by a mother is probably the most important role, although least appreciated, because she is in charge of household matters on top of the responsibility of taking care of the children. Aside from managing the household, mothers play a variety of roles like a teacher, counselor and guardian rolled into one.
Enriqueta Navarro, 64, had to do it all after her husband passed away in 1988. She became the breadwinner of the Navarro family. Given her limited income, she sought greener pastures to be able to feed the family. She went to Saudi Arabia in 1991. However, after six years, Navarro decided to return home for good. “I did not enjoy my work there, that’s why I decided to come home,” she told the BusinessMirror in an interview through Facebook Messenger.
The challenge to provide food on the table for the family and to give the children a better future pushed her to become a micro entrepreneur. However, the path to success is riddled with major roadblocks. As a result, Navarro became frustrated and almost gave up.
A silver lining emerged when a friend invited Navarro to join Kasagana-Ka Mutual Benefits Association (KMBA). By joining the cooperative, Navarro was able to jump-start her entrepreneurial endeavor. To hone her marketing skills, Navarro also attended the free livelihood training programs sponsored by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) that were held in their barangay.
The benefits of the training programs became apparent when Navarro introduced cooked meals to new customers, who liked her food products. Right now, Navarro’s store also sells pizza, empanada, buchi, French toast and embutido. “I received a lot of orders from clients during the Christmas season,” she said. “This enabled me to expand my market base.”
Navarro’s variety store has gone a long way since she established it 10 years ago. “I started my business with a kilo of flour in 2010,” Navarro recalled.
Dual role
Aside from being the breadwinner, Navarro also had to perform the dual role of a father and mother to her three children. Through her perseverance and guidance, she was able to produce a nurse, psychologist and a furniture seller. Now she has 11 grandchildren.
Navarro said her success as a parent could be attributed to her efforts to model the lessons she wanted to impart—she practiced what she preached to her children. Her way of teaching them to become responsible is by way of a rule that the children have to leave the house when they get married. “I have instituted that policy so they will become independent when they establish their own families,” she said.
Navarro pointed out that it was the virtue of frugality that helped her family to survive in those trying times. “As a wise man said, without frugality none can be rich, and with it very few would be poor,” she said.
To give back to the community, Navarro, through the assistance of KMBA, is currently helping her fellow senior citizens to become productive by teaching them to become micro entrepreneurs. “I want my fellow senior citizens to be productive even though they are already retired,” she said.
“ I want to give them an option to be busy and make money instead of just staying at home,” she added.
Empowering the grassroots
Me-an Ignacio, the general manager of Kabuhayan sa Ganap na Kasarinlan and Savings Cooperative (K-Coop) and the one who encouraged Navarro to join the movement, continues to encourage women to take the lead in empowering themselves to become micro entrepreneurs and help make a difference not only to their families but to their communities as well.
K-Coop started its microfinance in 2002 under the program of the Kasagana-Ka Development Corp. before it became a cooperative to enable members to become owners of the organization.
In partnership with microfinacing organization Maybridge Financing, K-Coop aims to uplift the lives of mothers from the grassroots to move up the economic ladder.
To help the mother-entrepreneurs, Maybridge is using digital tools to market their products and services.
Organized in 2006, KMBA provides affordable insurance products and services to marginalized women and their families. It is a sister organization of Kasagana-Ka Development Center Inc. (KDCI) whose client beneficiaries and staff members constitute KMBA’s primary members. KMBA provides associate membership to client/beneficiaries of its partner microfinance organizations and other organized sectors.
KMBA offers two basic services, namely, the Basic Life Insurance Plan (BLIP) and credit Life Insurance Plan (CLIP).
In partnership with Bankers Assurance Corp., KMBA also offers personal accident insurance with fire insurance or K-Kalinga. As part of their extended service to members, KMBA provides a post emergency residential housing.
Joey Bermudez, chairman of Maybridge Financial, said the organization advocates honest capitalism and an intention to create shared value. Navarro is a living testament to the success of their endeavor.