Bayanihan Savings Replication Project

What is the Bayanihan Savings Replication Project (BSRP)?

The BSRP is an attempt to replicate the success of the Bayanihan Paluwagan or Bayanihan Banking Program implemented by Pasay City since 1999. The word “savings” is used instead of “Paluwagan” or “Banking” to emphasize that this is essentially a community-based savings program.

Legal Bases

Memo Circular #2003-35 dated March 3, 2003 re: Adoption of the Bayanihan Savings Replication Project and the Procedural Guidelines for Its Implementation.

General Objective

The general objective of the BSRP is to give opportunities to poor to have access to financial services and livelihood opportunities.

Specific Objective

-         Organize communities into Financial Centers or Bayanihan intermediation

-         Implement a uniform and compatible saving-based financial intermediation system among cooperatives, community or people’s organization and barangays;

-         Implement a savings-driven and demand-driven micro-finance technology in order to provide the poor access to financial services in a viable and sustainable way

-         Establish and sustain a network of BSRP advocates to facilitate information exchange, experience sharing and financial cooperation among themselves towards the formation of a union or federation of cooperatives; and

-         Link this micro-finance technology to any city development program such as housing improvement, waste management, social security, etc. as well as agencies and establishments that will provide capacity building, resource development, product marketing, etc.

What is the Bayanihan Savings Replication Project (BSRP)?

The BSRP is an attempt to replicate the success of the Bayanihan Paluwagan or Bayanihan Banking Program implemented by Pasay City since 1999. The word “savings’ is used instead of “Paluwagan” or “Banking” to emphasize thet this is essentially a community-based savings program.

 What is the Bayanihan Paluwagan/banking Program?

The Bayanihan Paluwagan Program (BPP0 was first implemented in 1999 as the Bayanihan Banking Program in the City of Pasay under then Mayor Jovito Claudio. Under the leadership of the present Mayor of Pasay City, Mayor Wenceslao “PeeWee” Trinidad, the program has been sustained and has been awarded the Galing Pook Award for 2002. The BPP is a community-based savings, finance and enterprise program that builds the capacities of low-income families in handling their finances and managing their livelihood. It was conceptualized adopting the Filipino value of working and helping each other towards a common goal.

It also refers to the common practice of a group of people who voluntarily contribute their individual savings to a common fund from which they borrow to meet emergency or unexpected expenses. This practice operates on the basis of trust, cooperation and mutual help.

The general objective of this program is to give opportunities to the poor to have access to financial services and livelihood opportunities. Specifically, the program aims to:

-         Organize communities into Financial Centers or Bayanihan Centers;

-         Implement a uniform and compatible savings-based financial intermediation system among cooperatives, community or people\s organizations and barangays;

-         Implement a savings-driven and demand-driven micro-finance technology in order to provide the poor access to financial services in viable and sustainable way;

-         Establish and sustain a network of advocates to facilitate technology in order to provide the poor access to financial cooperation among themselves towards the formation of a union or federation of cooperatives; and

-          Link this micro-finance technology to any local development program such as housing improvement, waste management, social security, etc., as well as to agencies and establishments that would provide capacity building, resource development, product marketing, etc.

What are the benefits to be derived from the program?

-          Generation of social development benefits for community

-          Promotion of peace and order by forging trust, unity and harmony within the community

-          Promotion of self reliance and people empowerment

-          Promotion of entrepreneurship among the poor

-         Enhancement of LGU-non-government organization(NGO)-community partnership and corporation

-          Enhancement of capacities both at local government and community level

-          Increase and family income through saving and capital build-up

-          Increase in access to government programs

What are the most significant features of the Program?

-          Its is a grassroot or mass-based ”banking” system, implemented through the Bayanihan Center, a savings group composed of 20 to 30 member.

-          It is owned and operated by the community and largely by poor households. Thus promoting people empowerment.

-          It operates on the basis of trust, cooperation and mutual help, and promotes family values, moral recovery and biblical principles.

-          It utilizes the concept of “self-help” as opposed to “dole-out”.

-          It creates wealth in the form of savings of individual members.

-          It supports the entrepreneurship activities of the poor.

-          It is a consultative and participatory process involving members of the community in order to ensure community ownership and enhance sustainability.

-          It develops social and interpersonal skills, financial management skills, leadership skills, cooperation skills, and entrepreneurial skills, among others.

-          It helps deter crime and other illegal activities as a result of value formation and spiritual development among beneficiaries.

-          It adopts the vision: “Pinoy na Masagana, Maka-Diyos, at Mapagbigay.”

Why is DILG replicating the program through the BSRP?

 The success of the program has proven that an LGU can make available the mechanism, coordinate efforts, and engage in participatory governance to meet the some, if not all, the needs of its constituents. The replication of the Program will also strengthen LGU capability to be affective entrepreneurs and development managers; strengthen linkages with NGO’s Pos and other community-based organizations; and develop self-reliance among the people in the community.