Monsanto Philippines recently partnered with the Cagayan Provincial Government, through its Provincial Learning and Resource Center (PLRC), to conduct a financial literacy workshop to more than 200 government employees and underprivileged college students, mostly children of local farmers in the province of Cagayan.
The program, in partnership with the International Marketing Group-Wealth Academy (IMG-Wealth Academy), aims to build the participants’ know-how in financial management. The 200 participants were selected from select municipalities and farming communities in Cagayan, mostly from the most underserved areas in the province.
Monsanto Philippines Corporate Affairs Head Charina Ocampo highlights the importance of broadening financial literacy especially in the rural areas.
According to her, the country stands as one of the 30 least financially literate countries in the world, with only 25 percent of adults aware of the basics of managing their money.
“Monsanto shares the objective of the Cagayan government to promote financial independence amongst those living in rural areas. But as a sustainable agriculture company, we are especially committed to help improve financial stability in farming communities starting with the children of farmers, since a lot of family members of our growers still have challenges in planning their financial goals,” shared Ocampo.
Emelyne Tarangco-Mappala, 51, a corn farmer in Cagayan, shared one of the causes of financial illiteracy in their area: “Unfortunately, many of us here in our area are inexperienced on how to properly manage our money, often heavily dependent on high-interest loans. It’s also very rare that we have access to this form of training. We are actually thankful for this opportunity.”
During the workshop, however, participants were taught basic financial skills such as practical money management strategies. The activity also included short courses on building a solid financial foundation, complemented by lectures on sound investment tactics and creation of multiple streams of passive income.
Ocampo shared that after the successful implementation in Cagayan, the company is already looking at Iloilo to conduct its next financial literacy activity. Last year, Monsanto Philippines also conducted the financial literacy training to over 300 lady farmers in Bukidnon, Mindanao.
About Monsanto Philippines
Monsanto Philippines is a local unit of Monsanto, a Fortune 500 global power company with a diverse portfolio of advanced biotechnology products produced in 404 facilities in 66 countries. To date, Monsanto Philippines has four facilities spread out across the country, which includes its head office in Alabang, a Refuge-in-a-Bag (RIB) Plant and cold warehouse located in Bulacan, and an R&D station in Mindanao. The company also has partnerships with the Philippine government through the Department of Agriculture as well as the local scientific and academic communities in the promotion of modern agricultural biotechnology. To learn more, please visit www.monsanto.ph.
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