Association

Vol.: 03 No.: 02 Geneva, Switzerland December 2004

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2nd Ten Inspiring Entrepreneurial Students (TIES) Awards Gidget S. Aranda * Inquirer News Service©2004 INQ7money.

LAST Oct. 15-16, 28 promising student entrepreneurs from different colleges and universities in Metro Manila showcased their creative and ingenious businesses and provided the public a glimpse of how aggressive and entrepreneurial the Filipino youth can become.The event was the 2nd Ten Inspiring Entrepreneurial Students (TIES) Awards held at the Market! Market! at the Fort. The students were given the chance to showcase their creative and ingenious businesses and provide the public a glimpse of how aggressive and entrepreneurial the Filipino youth can become.Guest of honor Sen. Francis Pangilinan, a staunch advocate of youth development, stated “Do not be worried. There will come a time your P3,000 now will become half a billion in the future. There is no such thing as failure, only delay. You are the leaders, the future employers of the country.”Pangilinan emphasized the impact of entrepreneurship in the country, citing 70 percent of those working in the Philippines

are employed by small and medium enterprises. “Many Filipinos look for jobs, but it is the entrepreneur who provides these jobs.”Judging for the 2004 TIES awardees took place during the exhibit proper. The board of judges included Prof. Jay Bernardo of the Asian Institute of Management; Bam Aquino, chair, National Youth Commission; Ma. Luna David, VP for loans, Small Business Guarantee and Finance Corp. or SB Corp.; Dr. Alberto Fenix, chairman CHED Technical Panel for Business Education; and Gladys Judan, VP for Incoming Exchange & Finance, AIESEC Philippines.The top 10 student businesses were each awarded P10,000 cash, access to a loan as high as P200,000 from SB Corp. (upon registration as a business), mentoring from successful entrepreneurs, and exposure for their products or services.

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Editorial Staff: Charly Hernandez, Dennis de Guzman, Ian Orteza, P.A. EscalanteLayout & Design: Dennis de GuzmanOfficial Photographer: Herminio Caseria

Articles, opinions, letters to the editor should be sent to kakkampi@orangemail.ch

the projection, in a big way, of our theme as a Filipino people. We understand what we are and we know who we are when we are with other Filipinos but for foreigners we seem laid back and passive. We need to communicate to the world what we know of ourselves.” He emphasized, “We present what is Filipino in our music.”

Impressions of Geneva

Jim described Geneva as a beautiful place and given more time, he would like to discover the place and bring his children. He added, “It’s so quaint and so old Europe.” For Danny, Geneva is a historical place but given their short stay in the city he did not really get to “know” the place. “To know a place is to live like the denizens of the place...to walk around and see the place as it is,” he elaborated. Geneva is an “island” for Boboy. It’s a place in the middle of Europe but its sentiments are not “felt” because of its neutrality.

Filipinos in Geneva

“The Filipinos are warm as they are everywhere,” Jim said, “but it’s nice to hear

For many of their concerts abroad, the APO Hiking Society offers a trip home, a trip home to the Philippines without leaving the comfort of the auditorium seats. “There is no need for passports or tickets to go back home,” described Jim Paredes, one-third of the trio. And that is just what the group did at the Swissotel in Zurich on Nov. 12 and at the Arditi-Wilsdorf Auditorium in Geneva on Nov. 13, 2004. A few hundred Filipinos laughed at the trio’s jokes and nostalgic songs while some foreigners took their first trip to the Philippines via the Filipino song medley.

The group recently performed in Switzerland as part of their European 2004 Tour which also includes Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. They were invited by Mae Vinluan-Dolonius, founder of the Organisasyong Pilipinong may Malasakit (OPM) which carries the same acronym as Original Pinoy Music, the genre of the group’s music.

A repertoire to suit the Filipino audience abroad, Jim Paredes, Danny Garovillo and Danny Javier performed classical hits from their earlier albums and newly arranged Filipino folk songs sung in Top 40 American style.

Jim said that “when we go abroad, we try to promote what is Filipino.” He believes that the “Filipinos belong to such a wonderful race. In a sense we can slip into a culture and bloom and go back. We’re suave.” He contrasted by saying, “But what we lack is

APO Hiking Societyby PA Escalante

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Own a piece of PARADISE

1 Hectare beach property fronting 100 Islands in Pangasinan, Philippines

1 Hectare beach property fronting 100 Islands in Pangasinan, Philippines

the variants of Francolog (French-Tagalog)” as opposed to their American tour where the common American accent is heard among Filipinos.

“Filipinos everywhere have embracing warmth; it is not location-specific. It (warmth) manifests itself wherever Filipinos are,” recounted Danny.

Boboy encouraged the Filipinos to enjoy life in Geneva despite the pronounced difficulties of adjusting to a different culture. Danny said, “It’s easy to be orderly in an orderly country but one’s experience abroad should be a contribution or an improvement to our sense of order in the Philippines.”

Secret of staying together

When asked what is the secret of the group’s more than thirty years together, Boboy said, “It’s loving the same things,

same music, same love for entertaining people…it’s a coagulation.” Danny simply said, “It’s meant to be!” Jim joked with “It’s the ‘no sex’ thing. We just enjoy the music, the company and we maintain the great respect for each other.”

The APO Hiking Society was formed in 1973. The name is the shortened form of Apolinario Mabini Hiking Society after the initials of the Ateneo de Manila High School where the trio met. It was also a name that signified a paradox. Mabini is the “sublime paralytic” and one of the Philippines’ heroes.

Visit their website at: www.apohikingsociety.org

Call: +41 79 455 0193Call: +41 79 455 0193

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Virgin coconut oil has become the latest addition to the growing craze of healthy food options, and as these six De La Salle University students find out, combining anything with chocolate is never a bad idea.Anne Catherine Hernandez, Joshanna Rodriguez, Yvette Almabis, Catherine Ansay, Nikkolo Capalongan and Pia Manguiat were shopping in Greenhills when they came across a specialty store that sold virgin coconut oil. Intrigued with its taste and health benefits such as promoting weight loss and lowering cholesterol, they decided to come up with their own products that would use virgin coconut oil as the main ingredient. With a start up capital of P30,000, the group created Virgin Cookies and Bars and instantly made an impact at their first bazaar.Made with extra virgin coconut oil, Virgin Cookies are healthy, delicious, chewy and flavorful oatmeal cookies, while Virgin Bars are mouth-watering chocolate-filled revel bars with organic sugar and oatmeal. The bars retail at P95/box with 12 bars, while the cookies (mocha, white chocolate, chocolate chip and cashew raisin) sell for P90/box with 24 cookies.“We found the combination of good taste and health benefits appealing. We all love food, and we knew it was going to click,” says Hernandez.Virgin Cookies and Bars now averages 350 boxes of orders every month since it started in June this year.

ENTREPRENEURS’ Corner

BarakofiFaced with the daunting task of competing against global coffee giants such as Starbucks and Seattle’s Best, Miriam College students Nikki Fabian, Anna Menez, Indira Cobarubias and Pia Remata rose to the challenge and started Barakofi. Using coffee beans sourced from Kabangaan, Cavite, Barakofi offers specialty coffee with a distinct Filipino flavor.“Filipinos drink tons of coffee every year and unfortunately less than half of it comes from local farms. That’s why Barakofi was born. We want to promote our local coffee industry,” says Remata.Operating for a year and a half already, Barakofi offers Kapinoy (plain barako coffee), Barakookie (cookie flavor), Chokape (chocolate flavor), Kapeanut (chocnut flavor), and Kabiscuit (biscuit flavor) among its flavors.

WINNERS of the 2nd TIES Awards(Ten Inspiring Entrepreneurial Students)

Ida Buser+41 79 604 1564

idabuser@myPhilippinehome.comwww.myPhilippinehome.com

Make your dream a realityA d v e r t i s e m e n t

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Andrew Mier of Ateneo de Manila University and his childhood friends Eric Viacrusis, Sherwin Hermogenes and Miko Mallonga took the road less traveled when they decided to forego employment opportunities at various multinational companies and set up their own business. With nothing but a dream and a capital of P6,000, Banana Temptations was created, and eventually found its way into the snack food industry.Banana Temptations specializes in innovating traditional products made primarily out of banana, which includes the turon, bananacue, banana chips and banana cake.“People are already familiar with the turon. We just recycled an ‘old’ product and turned it into Crazy Caramel, Chuckle Chocolate, Rockin’ Road, Cinnamon Sugar and Pinoy Classic,” Mier says, referring to Banana Temptations’ different turon flavors. Banana Temptations started selling its products through home and office deliveries, catering services, barangay basketball games and school fairs early this year. Word of mouth, a large network of friends and families, and a cheap but delicious snack innovation all contributed to the growing success of the business.Banana Temptations has, already in fact, been offered to franchise their business with an amount the owners have never imagined possible.“We were tempted to take it, but we had to turn it down because we haven’t built our business yet,” says Mallonga. “We’re only opening our first stall in Megamall next month, and we know we still have a lot of work cut out for us.”

Bossa Candon Food ProductsThames International Business School student Ian Abaya had been running the family restaurant, Cafe Bossa in Ilocos, for almost four years when he saw an opportunity to expand the business.“Our dishes were becoming increasingly popular so I thought of bringing them to Metro Manila,” said Abaya, who has bottled and repackaged some of Cafe Bossa’s specialties like Kamatis, Bagoong and Lasona sauce (P65), Spicy Tuyo in Corn Oil (P75/piece) and Buttered Dulong in Olive Oil (P90/piece).Abaya started Bossa Candon Food Products last year with services that include home deliveries, catering and consignments in various restaurants in the city.The family restaurant, Cafe Bossa, was also a brainchild of Abaya and his brother. “We were on vacation in our grandfather’s hometown in Ilocos when the idea hit us. My brother and I were able to turn our grandfather’s house into a restaurant serving Ilokano specialties,” relates Abaya. The whole family showed their support by lending Abaya and his brother enough money to make their business work. Four years later, Abaya and his brother had paid the loan, grown the business and have ventured into a related field.

WINNERS of the 2nd TIES Awards(Ten Inspiring Entrepreneurial Students) 1part

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With the present slump in the transportation sector, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando yesterday advised returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) not to invest in public utility jeepneys (PUJs) and tricycles without legitimate franchises. In the MMDA’s weekly radio program, Fernando said that the over supply of PUJs and tricycles in Metro Manila and a not so significant increase in commuter demand have been killing the transport business. He appealed to the estimated seven million OFWs to invest their money wisely. Fernando reminded the public that operators have to pay P6,000 in fines if they are caught using vehicles with no legal franchise. He said the MMDA would be strict in implementing the rules because the public has been demanding better enforcement of traffic rules. For years, overseas Filipino workers have been using their savings to purchase transport vehicles hoping that these could provide additional source of income. “But this (belief) is no longer true. The drivers have not been earning enough money because there are too many public transport vehicles plying the streets. It is not worth their effort,” Fernando said.

The MMDA has also recently revived its campaign against colorum buses.Fernando said that more than 50 percent of the 3,000 buses in Metro Manila are operating illegally. Meanwhile, data from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) showed that OFWs comprised only two percent of the country’s 54 million working age population. The same data indicated that the 1.03 million OFWs recorded in April account for only 2.9 percent of the total 37.5 million in the labor force. Although OFWs remained a “minority,” the government recognizes their role in boosting the country’s economy through their remittances. OFWs from various countries abroad sends home $7 billion to their families annually. Philippine labor officials are set to meet with their counterparts from other labor-sending countries in an effort to address issues facing Filipinos migrant workers. Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas disclosed that the Philippines will forge an alliance with senior officials from Bangladesh, China, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan during the Migration Ministerial Summit to be held in Manila on Wednesday.

Don’t invest in public transport, OFWs toldBy Evelyn Macairan (The Philippine Star 09/20/2004)

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Cod liver oil likely brings back memories of Mom force-feeding you the foul-tasting stuff to keep you healthy.

Now it turns out the oil seems to have some benefit - for adults with osteoarthritis.

Researchers at Cardiff University in Wales gave cod liver oil supplements to arthritic people waiting for knee-joint-replacement surgery. After 10-14 weeks, 6 percent had significantly reduced levels of aggrecanase and collagenase, enzymes known to cause cartilage damage.

While the researchers don’t know exactly how cold liver oil works, they suspect the omega-3 fatty acids in the oil play a role. Omega-3 seems to slow down the damaging effects of arthritis.

Until further research confirms these results, eating foods rich in omega-3s (like salmon and other fatty fish) or taking cold liver oil capsules won’t hurt you, and may help arthritis.

ARTHRITIS Arrested

HEALTH Corner

Articles in this column are not a substitute for professional advice. For specific information of any illness and treatment you must consult a qualified medical professional in your area.

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