Teach 15,000 rural kids to save and invest

This speech was delivered by Iloilo City Public School Teachers and Employees Multi-Purpose Cooperative's Aflatoun Saver, Zoe, during the Asia Pacific Cooperative Youth Summit 2.0 held last August 18-21, 2018 in Cebu, Philippines. Zoe's story was heard and inspired 138 delegates who came from 17 countries in the Asia-Pacific where she was invited as one of the keynote speakers during the International Summit.

Good morning everyone.
My heart is full of joy because God has planned this day as an opportunity to show how prayers are answered not on our own timing but according to God’s timing. I am also delighted that I can also share with you my experiences on how a certain club or organization has created a great impact in my life, my brother, and my family. Indeed, one can never know the degree of influence of something such as the Aflatoun Club until one becomes a member and actively involves himself in life-changing endeavors.

A few years ago, the Iloilo City Public School Teachers and Employees MPC under the leadership of Sir Mamerto Rodriguez conducted an Aflatoun school to school campaign together with Dr. Teresa M. Penecilla who is in-charge of the COOP’s Aflatoun Program. Back then, I was very young and I wasn’t able to have a full grasp of it due to my age yet I just eagerly listened.

I was just able to have a full knowledge of the Aflatoun Program when Ma’am Cecilia V. Gapit started to organize SPED-ISEC’s Aflatoun Club. She went room to room to explain the benefits that one can get if we save money. She also shared that there are activities in stored for us and encouraged all of us to be Aflatoun Club members. At a young age, Ma’am Gapit, SPED-ISEC’s Aflatoun Coordinator, taught us financial literacy by motivating us to secure an Aflatoun savings account.

Before I knew Aflatoun, I felt my whole life was miserable and I can’t even help my family members when they are in trouble or when they are sick. Everyday, I would pray to God for a company, club, institution, or organization that would help each family, and teach every child of different ages about saving for the future and for future use such as when a family member gets sick or when there is an emergency need. That is why after the room to room campaign of Ma’am Gapit, it was there and then that I joined the Aflatoun Club and this club became the answer to what I have been praying for. It is also my being an Aflatouner which molded me to become a better version of myself. SPED-ISEC’s Aflatoun Club made a significant impact in my life.

Firstly, I gained confidence. The Aflatoun Club does not focus only on teaching us about financial aspects but also hones the social aspect of our lives through various activities inside and outside of the school like Aflatoun Day where members interact with each other and have time. Through this, I was able to come out of my shell for I got to meet different adults and children. I was able to boost my self-confidence when facing a crowd.

My newly found confidence translated to how I carry myself in school activities, classroom participation, and competitions that I participate in. I studied better in all academic subjects. I became 3rd honor when I was in Grade 1 and Grade 2, and With High Honors when I was in Grade 3 and Grade 4. I also won various contests like Journalism and Mathematics Competition. Now that I am in Grade 5, I continue to build my defenses against various challenges that I face everyday so that I will not lose the confidence that I have.

Secondly, the Aflatoun Program opened my eyes to the reality that we need to take part in saving the earth. What we do to nature will surely come back to us. I want to become a good caretaker of God’s creation that is why I participate in the environment-related causes of the COOP, the Aflatoun Club, and the provincial government such as the tree planting activities.

Thirdly, SPED-ISEC Aflatoun Club taught me that I must save not only for myself and family but also for others. Just recently, I, together with my fellow Aflatouners and the ICPSTE - MPC, used a portion of what we have saved to donate cleaning materials such as Zonrox, muriatic acid, powdered soap, tissue paper, broom, mop, dust pan, and a lot more to the needy schools during the Brigada Eskwela 2018.

I recalled - when I was in Grade 3- we had this PISO-A-DAY-FOR-THE-NEEDY wherein we dropped one peso a day inside a bamboo bank. If you think of it, it is just one peso but as time went by I realized that when people will just be selfless and think of others, we can help a lot of people and the one peso will go a long way.

Saving for others is not about the one peso or the money. Saving for others is about making a difference in the lives of those who are in need. True happiness is not about having lots and lots of money in the bank or in your pockets but it is in helping others knowing that you have done a deed that glorified God.

Lastly, I learned the value of saving every peso especially if it is acquired through hardwork. My father died because of cancer when I was in Grade 2. He was the sole provider of our family’s needs. When he died, our life turned upside-down - from having everything to having nothing. We used to have a business but it was sold because we need to pay for the hospitalization bills. Now, it is just me, my brother and my mother facing the day to day financial battle.

After my father died, we transferred to my uncle’s house – the brother of my mother. He has a small mango business. There I witnessed the importance of hard-earned money. It was not easy. There are times that we also help in his business. There are also instances that he would give me 20 pesos or 50 pesos for my allowance or an aunt of mine would give me 1,000 so that I can buy the things that I want. Instead of buying my wants – which are sometimes unimportant, -- I right away save it in my Aflatoun Savings Account for my future need. I have seen how difficult every peso is earned that is why I keep in my heart what the Aflatoun Program has taught me – to be thrifty and know the value of hard-earned money for every peso counts.

Being a saver, I am very happy because my success is making me improve everyday especially my attitude towards my daily activities in school, at home or wherever I go. Just this June 2018, God gave me a blessing. After Ma’am Elsie Hiponia, Aflatoun Savings-in-Charge of the COOP carefully looked into our records, my brother and I were awarded as one of the Top 10 Outstanding Aflatoun Savers of the Iloilo City Public School Teachers and Employees – MPC. I am thankful for the award. I didn’t expect that I will be receiving an award. My goal is just to save for the future. I never thought that God would add a cherry on top of my cake. He really makes everything beautiful in His time.

My presence here is also another blessing from above through an angel sent by God to relay a message of good news. Thank you for giving me this chance to be a living testimony that your goal of teaching the concepts and skills of social and financial education to learners has reached the grassroots. May you be more motivated, inspired, and driven in your campaign to reach out more children.

Ladies and gentlemen, to end, allow me to say this:

I am Zoe, an empowered Aflatouner who is a responsible and proactive citizen who has the determination to break the poverty cycle so that I can improve my family’s quality of life. I am humbled to be one of the agents of social and economic change. I don’t regret setting aside a portion of my allowance to save for the future because I am doing it wholeheartedly and the Aflatoun way.

Once again, good morning and thank you everyone.

The Asia-Pacific Cooperative Youth Summit 2.0 was successfully concluded in cooperdination with the International Cooperative Alliance-Asia and Pacific (ICA-AP) and the ICA-EU Partnership on Co-operatives in Development: People Centered Businesses in Action (#coops4dev) and its members in the Philippines, namely Federation of Peoples' Sustainable Development Cooperative (FPSDC), Lamac Multi-Purpose Cooperative, National Confederation of Cooperatives (NATCCO), MASS-SPECC Cooperative Development Center, Philippine Cooperative Center (PCC), and VICTO National Cooperative Federation and Development Center.  The organizers also worked in coordination with the local government of Pinamungajan, Cebu, and Cebu City. With the theme: 'Creative Skills, Co-operative Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development', the Summit served as a good opportunity to discuss Cooperative enterprise ideas that aim to fulfill youth-centric targets. 

• NATCCO Youth Newsletter (PDF)
  

Greetings to all of you, Global Givers!

We are already at the half of the year 2018 and so much have already happened! We have conducted several trainings, launchings, and activities and we would like to celebrate with you our achievement and plans. As of May 2018, with continuous support from you and our local cooperative partners, we are now reaching out to 280,926 children and youth all over the Philippines!

And as a partner of Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) in making sure the youth will be involved in the cooperative movement, one of the activities that NATCCO provide to our Aflatoun partner cooperatives is assistance in organizing Laboratory Co-operatives. Laboratory Cooperative is identified as a cooperative formed and managed principally by minors and is affiliated with another registered cooperative which is called the guardian cooperative, it will act as a training ground or cooperative school for the youth.

This month of July, we are having a laboratory cooperative orientation for our cooperative members who are more than interested to bring on the youth into the cooperative movement. It will serve as one of our answers to the growing need of preparing the children and youth for the future, aside from assisting the Department of Education in bringing a mix of social and financial education in schools.

For this year, we are working towards the goal of reaching out to more children -in schools and community- and we need as much help and support that we can gather. That’s why we are thankful for our partner organizations and also for your help, Global Givers. Your assistance allows us to do much for the kids who are dreaming of a brighter future. 

Till next update, keep saving!