PAMBANSANG KALIPUNAN NG MGA MANGGAGAWANG IMPORMAL SA PILIPINAS (PATAMABA), INC.

1. PAMBANSANG KALIPUNAN NG MGA MANGGAGAWANG IMPORMAL SA PILIPINAS (PATAMABA), INC. (The National Network of Informal Workers in the Philippines)

2. As Women, As Workers, As Entrepreneurs and their Need for Social Protection (The PATAMABA Experience) Presented to the ASEAN Regional Conference on Social Protection for Women in Enterprise Development December 4-5, 2014

3. Brief Background • Founded in 1991 as a membership-based organization of grassroots and marginalized homebased and informal workers • A non-stock and non-profit organization run and managed by majority of women homebased workers • Has a membership of around 18,000 own account/self-employed and subcontracted workers (including the youth) in 12 regions, 34 provinces and almost 276 local chapters nationwide

4. Brief Background • Members are engaged in individual and social/group micro-enterprises; networking with local government agencies; community housing;training cum production, social protection, and food and health services

5. Strategic Issues • The Vision, Mission and Goals (VMG) of the organization are translated into action to respond to the main strategic issues of homebased workers/members such as INVISIBILITY, ACCESS TO PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES, ACCESS TO SOCIAL PROTECTION and JUSTICE, and ASSET REFORM.

6. Programs, Services and Campaigns • organizing and coalition building (HomeNet Philippines) • capacity building & awareness-raising • advocacy & networking(intensified) • participation in governance & • institution building • Enactment of the Magna Carta of Workers in the Informal Economy (MACWIE) and other items on its legislative agenda; • Campaign for social protection focusing on occupational safety and health; • Resource mobilization for sustainability where trade facilitation is introduced and developed; and • Socio-economic assistance (facilitates common market, enterprise development and credit facility program and micro-finance.

7. Specific Organizational Initiatives in Addressing Social Protection on Homebased Workers/Entreprenuers 1) AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO MICRO-FINANCE • Apart from organizing for representation and advocacy, women home workers/entrepreneurs also see the need to have an enabling strategy that will allow them to engage in cooperative ventures and participate in advocacy reforms within the community. • The formation of group enterprises and cooperativesby PATAMABA women was aimed for addressing the need for alternative livelihood in lieu of the dwindling resources and lack of opportunities.

8. Specific Organizational Initiatives in Addressing Social Protection on Homebased Workers/Entreprenuers • Social enterprises activities are not centrally motivated by profit yet are responsive to women’s desire for economic empowerment where reciprocity, trust, mutual support and community involvement reign.  • PATAMABA builds women-led cooperatives and group enterprisesfocusing on organic food production

9. Specific Organizational Initiatives in Addressing Social Protection on Homebased Workers/Entreprenuers • Marketing of products : • Walk –in costumers • During learning exchange visits of schools and other visitors • Local market • Sold by PATAMABA

10. Specific Organizational Initiatives in Addressing Social Protection on Homebased Workers/Entreprenuers The Micro-Finance Program • Integrating Mutual Aid into the Micro-finance Program • In Region VI (Western Visayas) programs and services include livelihood loans, savings mobilization/capital build-up, skills training, awareness-raising (on gender issues and reproductive health), community organizing, entrepreneurship development, marketing assistance and emergency assistance (through their DAMAYAN—helping one another in times of crisis). • PATAMABA Region VI has a credit plus approach to micro-finance, combining lending with capacity building towards greater women’s participation and empowerment.

11. Exploring the Social Protection Experiences of Members Entrepreneurs • Some PATAMABA members are already members of the Social Security System (SSS) because of their previous work experience. • Many are members of PhilHealth through the indigent program (after screening by the Department of Social Welfare and Development or DSWD) and through the sponsorship by a congressman, who worked through a Foundation called the “Taos Puso Foundation”. • The contributions were paid for by the congressman and these were renewed yearly. • One PATAMABA Municipal Chapter was also a sentrong sigla municipality where free health services can be availed of by residents, including free medicines. • There is also a Women’s Crisis Center which deals with gender-based violence in the municipality.

12. Exploring the Social Protection Experiences of Members Entrepreneurs • Within PATAMABA, there are informal mechanisms for mutual aid. • Whenever anyone dies in the community, members contribute spontaneously, even without a designated collector. • PATAMABA officers relate that they have a PALUWAGAN or monthly contribution and some goes to a DAMAYAN fund.

13. Problems, Lessons learned, and Challenges • In managing the micro-finance program for women home-based and other informal workers is not just an easy task for grassroots leaders. • It needs a thorough understanding of the real situation of women as workers especially at the grassroots level doing both productive and reproductive work to survive the needs of their families and the like. • There is a need to capacitate them in terms of capacity building seminars particularly in managing their small enterprises, strengthening their organization, lobbying and advocacy skills.

14. Problems, Lessons learned, and Challenges • Some issues and concerns confronted by the group are: • a) some local government officials lack awareness on the issues of home-based workers and other workers in the informal economy in their area; • b) insufficient budget to conduct regular monitoring to members in far flung areas; • c) natural calamities such as floods and typhoons; • d) increased monthly contribution imposed by SSS for social protection benefits; and • e) emergency cases beyond control.

15. Problems, Lessons learned, and Challenges • There had been problems that they had encountered and experienced along the way in their advocacy and active networking with various agencies particularly government agencies and some local government units. • Some politicians (local chief executives –LGU level) favored organizations that they have influenced and politically motivated in terms of access and control of resources in their area of jurisdiction. If you are not favored by politicians you are the last to benefit; and this was also experienced by PATAMABA members in the region. • However, members are aware of their rights as women and as workers and they always use the rights-based approach in claiming their rights as home-based workers.

16. Problems, Lessons learned, and Challenges • As a learning point and a challenge as well, in order to claim what is rightfully theirs, there is a need to organize and strengthen the ranks of informal sector workers; • build the capacity of members/entrepreneurs to become strong and effective leaders to lead their organization and ; • members should be fully equipped to enhance their skills in negotiating, networking, lobbying and advocacy in all fields of struggle.

17. Women’s Empowerment • Women entrepreneurs participate in PATAMABA’s micro-lending program by studying its policies, showing responsibility and concern for its success, accessing loans, by patronizing other services – e.g. marketing and by giving feedback to their regional and local leaders during meetings and training activities. • Because of their long term organizational involvement and their exposure to gender training and issues, most clients manifest empowerment within the home (husband and other male members of the family share housework and child care), within the organization, and within the community. • PATAMABA believes in an integrated approach to women’s empowerment, which combines strategies such as awareness raising, community organizing, capability building, accessing resources (credit, technology, markets, etc.), social protection, lobbying, advocacy, and networking.

18. Ways Forward • For the scheme to be expanded and formalized, however, it should be able to afford paid staff. • This also means increasing the lending fund to about a million pesos, which is of sufficient scale to justify the hiring of dedicated personnel. • One way is to place the micro-finance under the umbrella of the two existing cooperatives, and motivate the clients to contribute more if they are already members, and to provide membership shares if they are not yet members. • This way the lending fund will not only grow but client members will even be more eager to borrow and save as they will be getting dividends and patronage refunds.

19. Ways Forward • Actively campaign for more membership coverage and wider benefit packages in SSS, PhilHealth, Red Cross, and DAMAYAN for their social security and protection. • Integrate more occupational safety and health in the micro-finance program. • Strengthen capacity of members/entrepreneurs in managing their social enterprises/livelihood projects through capacity building and skills upgrading training/seminars, product development and market access.

20. Maraming Salamat Po!AndMABUHAY!