The entrepreneurial poor helping the skilled and laboring poor for employment and to start their own micro-business is a genuine approach to poverty reduction.

Urban entrepreneurial poor women food vendors with a capital from PhP200 (US$1=PhP48) to PhP500 every morning earn from PhP50 to PhP150 net profit at the end of the day. For most of them, this is the only source of income for the household of from 4 to 16 members. About 90 percent of them borrow their capital from private persons at 20 percent interest rate from 15 to 60 days depending upon the urgency of the need. The rest (barely10 percent) borrow from families without interest or use their hard-earned savings. Both short-term and long-term loans are paid in equal amounts in daily installment basis. Hence, almost half of the month, their income goes to the payment for loans. How the women help the family survive given this background is worth analyzing and documenting if we are sincere in helping them alleviate poverty.

Ninety-five percent of these women food vendors have been in business from 5 to 25 years, pushing themselves too hard to survive in this harsh business climate and high risk, competitive economic environment. High risk, because although they borrow money for their capital, they sell their goods to long-time customers on credit - some credits never get paid. It is considered highly competitive because they sell almost the same goods in the same area. They have been tied to their loans in about the same number of years that they have been to business. A few of them inherited the business and the loans of their parents. How do we get them out of the culture of borrowing and force them to save and invest until it becomes a habit?

Thirty percent of the women food vendors' expenses are spent on cooking energy, using kerosene or LPG. Those who use kerosene find it convenient because they can buy fuel by liter in plastic retail containers by the day. Those who buy LPG purchase by 11kg tank and consume this in 3 days to one month depending upon the volume of food cooked. They cook in closed, windowless kitchen or along the streets outside their house near the vending area. Those who cook in closed, windowless kitchen inhale the fumes, their sweat get dry in their tired bodies because of the heat from the cooking stove, thereby causing eye irritation, headache, body and muscle pains and numbness after long hours (6 to 12 hours) of cooking.

Approtech Asia, with assistance from UNDP REP-PoR (Regional Energy Programme for Poverty Reduction) based in Bangkok, introduced in 2006 to over a hundred food vendors in the metro cities of Manila, Cebu and Davao, a fuel-saving, energy-efficient MABAGA (flaming red) charcoal stove and provided micro-finance assistance to relieve them or gradually graduate them from loan sharks and from paying 20 percent interest loan. Capability-building activities on food micro-business management, record keeping and basic accounting, food hygiene and sanitation, meal planning and food processing, solar water disinfection, among others, were conducted. Only those who complete all training courses avail of the improved cookstove, micro-finance facilities, food cart, health card or certification from the City Health Office after undergoing chest X-ray, stool examination and sputum laboratory test, among others. These tests were conducted since the Philippine Department of Health reports that 7 out 10 food handlers are infected with intestinal parasites and 6 of 10 Filipinos suffers from tuberculosis (4th in the world and highest in Southeast Asia).

After almost a year, the women food vendors realized a saving in cooking energy from PhP300 to PhP7,800 per month with the use of from one to three units of the improved cookstove. The MABAGA charcoal stove is clean and smokeless (depending upon the quality of charcoal used). "It is flaming red and very hot inside but cool outside and the flame hits the bottom of the pot steadily unlike the kerosene and LPG stoves which flame dances with or gets blown with the wind", claims the improved cookstove users. It is portable but durable, still cooking as good as the first time it is used and for almost a year now. All their health complaints are gone despite the fact that plans and agreements on the improvement of the kitchen is being finalized.

The vendors promote the MABAGA charcoal stove and sold over 500 units in over six months to their fellow vendors, neighbors, customers and government employees who come to buy the stove after learning the savings from cooking energy and the health benefits from using the stove. They also earn from selling the stove aside from increasing their number of friends and associates.

A few women food vendors have started selling good quality charcoal to their peers. There is an increasing order for stoves among customers and peers. Approtech Asia assists charcoal producers to use improved kiln and produce high quality charcoal to the AFVs.

The micro-finance assistance provided to the vendors has helped many of them to break their chain from the loan sharks. Financial assistance were used to increase their capital, expand their business, improve their stalls or carts, purchase of glass food cabinets and eating utensils, buy charcoal in sacks, among others. When they had no capital they get consigned goods from peers in which they make a mark-up of only PhP1 per unit but with the capital they buy goods directly from the supermarket and make a mark-up of 25 to 30 percent or PhP3-5 per unit of goods. However, AFVs still find it advantageous still to consign perishable goods even with very low mark-up for the simple reason that at the end of the day, the consignee gets back all the goods so the AFVs have nothing to loose.

Around 20 percent of the women food vendors are proud to tell their success stories in our "herstory" sessions about their savings and loans helping them to pay equity for their low-cost housing loan. They qualify as urban poor recipient of a lot measuring from 32sq.m. to 50 sq.m. in resettlement areas where they construct a semi-concrete house. They pay PhP200 per month installment for 25 years. Some vendors are able to buy a small temporary house which they renovate into a semi-concrete house in a lot which they rent. For example, Erlinda Duapa's savings of PhP300 monthly from cooking energy is more than enough to pay her monthly land rental of PhP200 of the public land where her newly-acquired semi-concrete house stands. The balance of PhP100 pesos from savings is used to pay for electricity for lighting. It was a blessing in disguise when the house which her family rents was demolished along with houses of other entrepreneurial poor vendors to give way to the construction of commercial buildings by the government or the land-owners. Other vendors have bought furniture to make their houses livable and comfortable. Most of them have bought new cooking and eating utensils for their business and still a few have expanded their business. The equity paid to acquire the land and the house renovation or construction were realized because of their savings from cooking energy and their small loans ranging from PhP4,000 to 20,000.

Three ambulant food vendors in Manila have rented a place and are applying for a business permit. Some vendors in Cebu and Manila have constructed an extension at the frontage of their houses to put-up a retail store in addition to their street food vending. This is in preparation to the time when P.D. 856, The Code of Sanitation which considers cooking and selling of cooked food in the streets illegal, will be strictly implemented by the local government.

All financial assistance are released through bank checks, teaching and guiding the micro-food vendors how to make business transaction with the bank, making good relationship with the bank staff, giving them the feel of being a partner of the development banks. This is important since the food vendors are being prepared to legalize their business and when their bank records and assets would qualify them to avail of low-interest bank loans, it will be easy for them to do so. This exercise has helped the food vendors develop self-confidence, work harder and aspire to make good in the business until they find a legal place for vending, acquire a business permit that qualify them to avail of low-interest loans from micro-finance institutions (MFIs) or the development banks.

With the recent development, Approtech Asia opened a new window for housing loan for those who have the capability to pay (good tract record in repayment; PhP10,000 and above business capital) and the opportunity (approved application) to own a house and lot in urban poor resettlement areas.

During the evaluation meeting in February 2007, 10 months after the project implementation and six months after the energy intervention and financial assistance, the women food vendors show concern among one another and came up with an idea of putting-up an emergency loan fund to help their peers (beneficiary of the projects only) who experience illness among the immediate members of the family and a common fund for their contribution to peers in times of serious illness and mortality up to the first degree family relations.

The rationale behind this suggestion is that, as a practice, food vendors who need money when a member of the family is ill go to loan sharks or neighbors to borrow money from PhP300 to PhP500 only at 20 percent interest even for a week or 15 days only and paid in full. In times of death in the family, they borrow from PhP5,000 to 25,000 from loan sharks at 20 percent interest for 60 days, paid in equal installment daily.

The emergency fund, managed by an elected AFV, will be provided by Approtech Asia with interest rate suggested and agreed by the vendors and payable in 8 equal installments on a weekly basis. The common fund is a contribution suggested and agreed by every women food vendor amounting to PhP10 (less than US20 centavos) on a weekly basis. The common fund will be the food vendors' contribution to those who need the financial assistance based on the criteria set and the requirements agreed upon to avail of the assistance. Moreover, the common fund will be used in activities such as group meetings, registration of the organization, seminars, parties, investments, among others, agreed by the members. A policy on the use of the emergency and common fund is being drafted for ratification by the women food vendors.

Aside from the emergency and common fund, another important suggestion that made the food vendors interested and excited is their application for membership to Social Security System (SSS) and Philippines Health Insurance Services (PHIC). These would give them security when they get sick and face the inevitable. Membership to SSS will also give them the security that even when they are old and no longer working, a little money would still come monthly in the form of pension. SSS also provides mortuary aid. This will also provide them another window for financial assistance in the future since a member, after 36 monthly contributions, can avail of low-interest loan. Approtech Asia will assist and guide them in their application and will provide their annual/quarterly contributions through the regular loan/financial assistance window.

Sickness among family members and the vendors themselves is most often the reason for their absence in their business. A day without business means no income for the family and most likely, even their capital would be used up for additional expenses on doctors, hospital and medicines. Therefore, having medical insurance and social security reduces the burden on women food vendors.

Another striking outcome of the project is that food vendors have improved in their personal appearance aside from the improvement in their stalls, food canisters, serving dishes and additional glass display cabinets in their food carts. They look hygienic and well-groomed unlike when we first met them. They have expanded their social circles and have helped one another in many ways such as, sharing of food recipes and learning from each others business-related secrets, helping each other financially, and having someone to talk to when feeling down and hopeless. Some husbands of the women food vendors who are seasonal hired laborers and contractual workers have quit their jobs to join their wives in marketing and cooking food. A few husbands have stopped gambling and spend time to cook and vend with their wives. Some children have lend a hand to their mothers in the small business. Still, the women hold the purse and manage the business. Husband and wife decide on their priority for investment of their savings for the future, especially those women food vendors who are above 55 years of age.

Orientation meetings have been set in the first quarter of this year for expansion of the project to include another 200 urban poor food vendors (our target 1,000 this year) who express interest to join the project and request for an orientation meeting in Manila, Cebu and Davao. There are more than 50,000 food vendors, mostly women, who need training in business and food hygiene and sanitation, guidance in business and close business mentoring so that they are able to pay their loans which most of the MFIs do not provide. Most MFIs lend and create pressure from peers to pay back the loan without the necessary inputs to improve business and increase income and the importance of saving. Those who fail loss their character, name, dignity and self-confidence, which the poor women claim that these are the only things they have and need to survive. Women food vendors who have bad experience with MFIs feel they were cheated, robbed of their dignity and deprived of a better future because they are made poorer than before they were helped.

The project has accomplished this much in a short time because of the joint effort and technical assistance of committed experts in the government agencies, non-government organizations, cooperatives, scientists and technologists, such as the Local Government Units and the City Health Offices of Manila, Cebu and Davao, Alternative Learning Systems of the Department of Education, Philippine Commission for the Urban Poor, National Anti-Poverty Commission Special Concerns Unit, Integral Development Services-Philippines, ESLA Cooperative, Winning Technologies (WinTEX), Federation for the Advancement of Food Science and Technology (FAFST), among others.

Proposals to upscale the project to reach out to 20 percent of the 50,000 unregistered urban poor women food vendors in three years have been submitted to local and international funding agencies to respond to the numerous requests for assistance from the most hit of the economic crisis - unregistered, ambulant and street food vendors in the urban poor communities - who do not have the opportunity or the right connection to avail of government, non-government organizations and private sector assistance because they are not organized, have no decent houses, no legal status and no business permit.