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COVID-19 has drastically affected every aspect of day to day living. For the majority of the population, it meant the loss of jobs and a stable source of income, the uncertainty of having food to eat, and the constant worrying over the risk and dangers of the virus to their families. The onslaught of the pandemic, along with bad governance, have caused millions of people to suffer from financial distress, making even the most basic necessities all the more difficult to acquire. Hence now more than ever, providing financial assistance that is sustainable and wide-ranging should be given utmost priority in order to help vulnerable groups cope with the shocks of the crisis.

Low-income households in the country particularly depend most on microfinance services, including basic savings accounts, small loans and remittances. Microfinance is seen as an important means to helping them increase their income, build assets and reduce vulnerabilities in times of contingencies. But despite how this practice has helped alleviate poverty, questions of access and availability especially to rural areas still remain in this day and age. For instance, data shows only 23 percent of Filipino adults have accounts, while the most vulnerable sectors have no bank accounts where social assistance could be quickly channeled. Moreover, only 18 percent of the adult population have insurance, while only three percent invest in financial instruments. Studies also indicate that microfinance has so far been urban-based, largely catering retail or trading microenterprises. These are just a few of the many indications of the reality that many of the poor, particularly the rural population, are yet to be reached by microfinance. 

In order to expand financial services across the country, it is then possible to employ appropriate government interventions, specifically in strengthening the capacities of microinsurance institutions and cooperatives to further promote their mandate effectively and sustainably, eventually benefitting most especially the poor and disadvantaged in the country.

26 September 2020

Microinsurance MBA Association of the Philippines, Inc.

Greetings!

I am Jenina Camille Kagaoan, a third-year student from the Ateneo de Manila University. I am writing this letter in hopes of forwarding an advocacy to your esteemed organization, focusing on financial literacy among the youth in rural areas of our country.

Financial literacy has become all the more important especially now that we face a health crisis. The severe economic and social impacts of the pandemic has led millions of Filipinos to fall deeper into poverty - leaving them unemployed and with very limited means of sustaining themselves and their families. Such an unfortunate situation prompts many of the youth, particularly those living in rural areas, to assume a much bigger responsibility of keeping their families afloat especially in circumstances where they act as breadwinners of the family. It is extremely difficult then to imagine the reality of these people having to share the burden of worrying about their financial security above all else. 

This essentially brings forth the importance of instilling money management skills early on, equipping more so the youth with adequate financial knowledge on budgeting, saving, and investing among others in preparation for unprecedented times like this. In concretizing this vision, however, it is likewise important to acknowledge the need to make information more clear and accessible as well to open up opportunities for the youth to participate in discussions regarding finance that would hopefully benefit them now and more importantly in the future.

It is because of these that I found appropriate to consider your organization a possible partner for the said advocacy. I recognize your longstanding commitment towards professionalizing microinsurance services that provide universal risk protection for the socio-economically disadvantaged. But I believe that alongside this, it would also be possible to increase the focus on the youth by providing information campaigns on the fundamentals of financial services including savings, credit, remittances, payments and insurances. More and more financial digital options are also being made available now in our time. However, most of these are still foreign and inaccessible most especially to remote areas in the country. This then ultimately highlights the importance of upholding financial inclusion which is, to my knowledge, one of the major thrusts of your organization.

Therefore, it is in my hopes that these initiatives will eventually empower the youth to be more financially responsible, translating their learnings into essential life skills that would prepare them for the world.

Best regards,

1. I don’t like to agree with her arguments because her appearance in the video - her clothes, books, and glasses - made it all look fake and pretentious.

2. We conducted an internet connection survey among students of Sitio Rizal. Results showed they had stable connection, therefore it must be the same for their neighboring sitios Andres and Apolinario.

3. Either you give up your dream for a more practical job, or you live off the streets for the rest of your life.

4. Rody: Why are you using gasoline as a disinfectant?! Don’t you know that can kill you? Bong: Wait a minute, you use gasoline too! Why should I listen to you?

Upon completing the readings, I was able to understand the concepts of development communication and communication for development - their history, practices, how their definitions changed over the years, and how these are gradually applied in our context today.

I want to start with my main takeaway - communication is so much more than the process of sending and receiving messages; it is a part of life and frankly what grounds ideas, beliefs and values among members of a certain group. Beyond the technicalities involved in communication is essentially the desire to advance our society. Hence, communication itself is indeed part and parcel of development.

Development communication has been redefined several times over the years. I find this particularly interesting especially because development and communication - both being social processes - take on new meanings depending on how it is practiced in different contexts.

In Quebral’s discourse, it can be noted how the emphasis of development shifted from economic growth to a more participatory approach, centering on the very idea of community members as determinants of the process and direction of their development through education, dialogue and collective action. The aforementioned shift eventually opened up a wide range of opportunities for individuals to assume an active role within their respective communities which is then carried onward through communication.

Both readings by Quebral and Chatterjee emphasize the role and importance of communication media in disseminating information, creating forums and consensus and educating people on life skills and values. What I found most striking though is Quebral’s discourse on the concentration of media in urban communities. I believe this is reflective of how our country’s communication system is largely urban-based with low priority given to rural communities and their problems. it was also mentioned that information and communication technology are now “pocket-sized, portable, personal and affordable” - but for whom really? It is definitely important to acknowledge the contributions of media over the years - however it is equally essential to also address its biases most especially towards individuals who are being subject to limited access with regards to the information they need. So the question becomes, if information isn’t relayed to even the most remote areas, how will these people be empowered to realize their role in concretizing development?

Such discourses frankly made me realize the pressing need for development communication in our context today, especially in the actualization of development initiatives. It is also worth mentioning how Chatterjee talked about development journalism; how it can provide the public with a more in-depth and transparent analysis of different development efforts that the government, or any other institution, pushes forward.