Mengasah tukang roti

Di bawah program Kawiyagan (istilah Maranaon untuk 'livelihood'), Aboitiz meresmikan tiga toko roti yang baru dibangun dan mendistribusikan 12 peralatan toko roti kepada kelompok-kelompok dan organisasi lokal yang berafiliasi dengan Perubahan Gerakan yang memenuhi syarat di Iligan dan Marawi melalui Kantor Sekretaris Kabinet - Kantor Pemerintahan Partisipatif.

Setiap peralatan bakery terdiri dari oven baja, rak roti, meja kerja, penggilas adonan, rak pajangan, sepeda pengantaran, dan pasokan awal tepung Pilmico Halal. Donasi fisik ini dilengkapi dengan pelatihan pembuatan roti yang akan membantu para penerima manfaat untuk mempertahankan usaha mereka.

Ibu dari lima anak, Jasmine Balt, salah satu penerima bantuan peralatan membuat roti berbicara atas nama para ibu yang telah kehilangan sumber pendapatan mereka setelah karantina yang mengerikan selama lima bulan.

"Saya sangat berterima kasih kepada Aboitiz dan Pilmico yang telah memberikan pelatihan ini kepada kami. Jika kami diberi kesempatan untuk memiliki toko roti sendiri sebagai mata pencaharian, itu akan sangat membantu, terutama bagi para ibu yang tidak memiliki sumber pendapatan lain" kata Balt.

Sementara itu, Noni Lao, seorang pengungsi dari Raya Saduc, Marawi dan penerima bantuan peralatan roti lainnya, mengatakan bahwa pengalaman yang menghebohkan tersebut terus menghantuinya, membuatnya terkadang merasa putus asa. "Di ko alam paano kami naka-bertahan hidup. Gaano ka-kaya di Marawi siang, pare-pareho na kami ngayon, Walang kaya, walang miskin. Lahat miskin. (Saya tidak tahu bagaimana kami bisa bertahan. Tidak peduli seberapa kaya Anda di Marawi saat itu, kami semua sama saja sekarang. Tidak ada yang kaya atau miskin. Semua orang miskin)," kata Lao.

Petani jagung kuning

Aboitiz menjalin kemitraan dengan GoNegosyo, sebuah lembaga nirlaba nirlaba dari Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship, untuk membimbing sekitar 200 petani penghasil jagung kuning di Maranao dan menghubungkan mereka dengan pembeli potensial.

Anak perusahaan Aboitiz Equity Ventures yang bergerak di bidang makanan, Pilmico dan Aboitiz Foundation, bersama dengan GoNegosyo dan Task Force Bangon Marawi, meluncurkan program kemitraan kewirausahaan mikro selama tiga tahun bagi para pengungsi internal di daerah pemukiman kembali Balo-i.

Idenya adalah untuk melatih (melalui program Kapatid Mentor Me) dan pada awalnya membiayai para petani ini. Setelah mereka lulus standar kualitas jagung Pilmico, mereka akan memasok sebagian dari kebutuhan jagung kuning untuk berbagai produk pakannya.

Hingga saat ini, program ini telah menyelenggarakan beberapa pelatihan termasuk pembentukan pola pikir kewirausahaan, pembentukan nilai-nilai, manajemen pemasaran, model kanvas dasar, akuntansi dasar, manajemen keuangan, dan manajemen koperasi dasar.

Pertanyaan yang Sering Diajukan

What does the Marawi program reveal about Aboitiz’s broader approach to corporate social responsibility?
The Marawi initiative demonstrates a model where CSR is integrated with core business operations — Pilmico’s flour and feeds supply chains — rather than being entirely separate from commercial activity. By combining immediate tangible support (bakery kits, equipment) with skills training and a direct route into Pilmico’s sourcing network, the program creates measurable, repeatable economic outcomes rather than one-time donations. This reflects the Aboitiz Group’s stated purpose of advancing business and communities simultaneously.

What is the Kawiyagan program and what was it designed to address?
Kawiyagan — the Maranao term for “livelihood” — is a post-conflict recovery initiative by Aboitiz and Pilmico targeting communities in Iligan and Marawi devastated by the 2017 Marawi siege. The program inaugurated three newly constructed bakeries and distributed 12 complete bakery kits to qualified organizations affiliated with Kilusang Pagbabago, channeled through the Office of the Cabinet Secretary. Each kit included ovens, bread racks, working tables, dough rollers, display shelves, delivery bicycles, and an initial supply of Pilmico Halal flour — along with practical bakery training to make the enterprise sustainable.

Who were the primary beneficiaries of the bakery kits and what did the support mean to them?
The bakery kits were distributed to internally displaced people — particularly mothers who lost their income sources during the five-month Marawi siege. Beneficiary Jasmine Balt, a mother of five, described a bakery livelihood as an enormous help specifically for mothers left without any income. Another recipient, Noni Lao, shared that the conflict erased economic distinctions overnight: regardless of prior wealth, everyone was left equally impoverished, making livelihood support a community-wide necessity rather than merely individual aid.

What partnership supported the yellow corn farming component of the program?
Aboitiz, through Pilmico and Aboitiz Foundation, partnered with non-stock, non-profit Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship’s GoNegosyo to mentor approximately 200 Maranao yellow corn producing farmers in the Balo-i resettlement area. The three-year micro-entrepreneurship partnership program was implemented alongside Task Force Bangon Marawi and included the Kapatid Mentor Me training platform, covering entrepreneurial mindset development, marketing management, cooperative management, accounting, and financial management.

How did Pilmico integrate the yellow corn farmers into its own supply chain?
The corn farmer program was structured with a direct supply pathway: once the Maranao farmers met Pilmico’s corn quality standards through training, they were able to supply a portion of Pilmico’s yellow corn requirements for its various animal feeds products. This approach — mentoring farmers into a verified supply chain rather than simply donating to them — created a commercially sustainable income stream for beneficiaries rather than a one-time charitable transfer.