The private
sector plays a significant role when it comes to economic growth in the
Philippines by generating more jobs and contributing to our gross domestic
product (GDP). Beyond that, it is also considered to be a driving force for
inclusive and sustainable development in the country as more and more
businesses employ corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives to address
social and environmental concerns within the communities where they operate.
By helping
improve the quality of life of the people in these host communities, business
is able to flourish. As such, CSR has become a key pillar of successful
business management through the years. SM’s visionary founder, Henry “Tatang”
Sy, Sr., put it best in his principle that social development and investment go
hand in hand with business growth to achieve a better future.
The SM
group has embraced the responsibility to contribute to nation building through
its social good arm, the SM Foundation, Inc. (SMFI). For nearly four decades,
we have focused our resources, time, and reach to ensure that we are able to
create opportunities wherever SM is present through social good programs that
are geared towards quality education, sustainable agriculture, healthcare, and
disaster response.
Anchored on
Tatang’s belief that education is the greatest equalizer, SMFI established the
SM Scholarship Program in 1993 to provide the youth access to quality tertiary
and vocational education. We believe that through our scholarship grants, SM
will be able to contribute to eradicating the intergenerational poverty cycle
by granting scholarships to economically challenged but deserving students. And
to complement this and more importantly, to address the challenges being faced
by our public school system, SMFI, together with social good partners such as
SM Prime, we have provided school buildings equipped with key facilities and
equipment to underserved communities.
KSK Pasay
Another
social good pillar of SMFI is sustainable agriculture that aims to address the
dilemma of the aging farmer population in the country as well as the growing
gap between supply and demand for local food sources. In 2007, the foundation
launched the Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan (KSK) program to bring modern and
sustainable farming skills and linkages in both rural and urban communities,
empowering farmers to have food on their table and creating market linkage to
provide them with economic opportunities.
Accessible
healthcare and timely disaster response are also at the heart of the
foundation’s advocacy. Through its Health and Wellness program, SMFI helps
address the shortage of quality healthcare facilities in the country by
constructing and upgrading health centers in host communities supplemented by
medical mission activities nationwide. The Operation Tulong Express (OPTE), on
the other hand, gives immediate assistance in the form of relief goods and
medical services in collaboration with SM Supermalls and SM Markets to
communities affected by calamities and disasters that frequently occur in the
country.
During the
onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, SMFI was one of the first organizations
to assume an active role in assisting in the pandemic response by expanding the
reach and impact of the Health and Wellness program and utilizing its
partnerships to extend a helping hand to frontliners and Filipinos nationwide,
especially those in SM host communities.
Through
these social good programs, we continuously aspire to be a development partner for
our host communities and serve as model for other organizations in terms of bringing
social development specially in areas where they operate.
Implementing
CSR involves a dynamic learning process given that social and environmental
good are moving targets – and
these cannot be fully achieved through one-time activities and decisions.
Instead, companies should view and approach CSR as a process of continuous
improvement that involves being constantly alert to new issues and
considerations, which can be achieved through consistent community consultation
and engagement.
And
contrary to the notion that CSR is only an approach for large corporations and
multi-national businesses, small and medium-scale enterprises can also have the
means to benefit their respective communities in their own ways. In fact, they
are more likely to effectively facilitate local-level CSR programs as they are
more deeply embedded in their communities. Examples of these include sourcing
of raw materials from community-based suppliers, matching and encouraging
charitable work by employees, and even as simple as going paperless in their
daily business operations.
CSR
programs, no matter the size or scale, are valuable to the communities they are
serving because of their pivotal role in promoting sustainable, just, and
balanced development, and contribution in addressing social and environmental
challenges.
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