SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP: ENABLING CHANGE IN THE SOCIETY

A Research Paper
Presented to the Faculty of the PhD – Educational Management Program
MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY
School of Graduate Studies
General Santos City

In Partial Fulfilment
of the Requirements for the Course
PS 330 Seminar in Social Change

KURT B. CATOLICO
MAY 2018
 SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP: ENABLING CHANGE IN THE SOCIETY
by Kurt B. Catolico, MA, LPT

Introduction

The British Council has published a report entitled, “A Review of Social

Enterprise Activity in the Philippines” which noted the Philippines as a populous

(107 million people) geographically dispersed (7,107 islands) and youthful

country (34% of the population under 14 years old), where more than a quarter

of the population lives below the poverty line. The Philippines is beset with a

number of social problems and one peculiar among those is poverty. The report

also noted that the social enterprise movement in the country which addresses

the problem on poverty is growing and evolving fast.

It is in this context that the researcher is interested to understand what

social entrepreneurship is and how it changes the face of society especially a

poverty-stricken society like the Philippines.

Objectives of the Study

The aim of this study is to understand social entrepreneurship and how

it enables change in the society. Thus, the research questions are as follows:

1. What is social entrepreneurship?

2. How does social entrepreneurship enable change in the society?

Findings and Discussion

Social entrepreneurship is becoming more and more popular amongst

nonprofit organizations and also one of the most misunderstood concepts by

the majority of people. Many people consider it as a business for making money
along with social cause and many consider it as a nonprofit business just for

the well-being of the individuals. Social entrepreneurship in its true sense is

much more than these two concepts.

Many of the poorest provinces in the Philippines are in rural areas, made

up of fisher folks and farmers. They are normally susceptible to market prices

and natural disasters. Using social entrepreneurial principles community

members are able to access other sources of income, so the community is less

susceptible to factors beyond their control.

According to www.consciousconnectionmagazine.com, the social

entrepreneurial principles are the following:

Cause-driven: A social enterprise is a business without profit

maximization purpose where the objective and purpose is to overcome or

alleviate a global or local issue such as poverty, education, health, technology

access or the environment.

Financial and economic sustainability: As any other business, financial

numbers and cash flow must be in line with what is expected and sustainable

in the long-term.

Investor returns: Investors will receive a return on their investment

amount only — no dividend. Investors must only receive back what they put in.

The profit generated stays in the company: Once the investments are

paid back, profit will stay with the company for expansion and improvement.

Gender sensitive and environmentally conscious: Tackling gender

discrimination and inclusion is vital as well as integrating environmental impact

actions.
 Workforce will receive market wage and better working conditions: More

emphasis on well-being at the workplace is given, fostering long-term

relationships with employees and striving for their happiness.

Joy in their work: Businesses that work for a purpose of helping a cause

and doing it with joy.

These social entrepreneurial principles are put into practice by

individuals who are called social entrepreneurs. They are those who recognize

social problems and start working in a different way to organize, create, and

manage a venture to resolve social problems. They are people who intend to

positively influence the life of poor, helpless, miserable, and needy people are

social entrepreneurs (Horsnell & Pepin, 2002). Currently social

entrepreneurship is one of the leading demands of the society.

Social entrepreneurs at times work individually to bring a major change

in the lives of the destitute, poor, miserable, and needy people (Boschee &

McClurg, 2003). Success of any business or any activity is dependent on many

skills which can be accumulated by gathering many individuals with different

skills. Therefore, for ideal social enterprises it is necessary that many

individuals with different skills may start the venture to run a project successfully

(Light, 2006).

A group of social entrepreneurs creates a social entrepreneurial

community which is able to maximize the opportunities presented to them. Their

work helps their communities and their people through more jobs, increased

incomes, improved livelihoods. Social entrepreneurs contribute to community

development so that the entire community has improved conditions, not just

individuals, through sustainable grassroots methods.

The rise of Social Entrepreneurship in the Philippines

Despite rapid economic growth, poverty in the Philippines remains a

major problem. But progress is being made with the recent rise in the number

of social enterprises, said the British Council Philippines in its The State of

Social Enterprise in the Philippines report. According to the report, there are

now around 164,473 social enterprises in the country. One in 4 social

enterprises operating is led by a millennial. Social enterprises are

economically-sustainable businesses or startups founded with a core social or

environmental mission. Grants and other external funding should only

contribute a maximum of 25% of their annual inflows, stated the report.

Millennials, or those born in the 1980s to 1990s, drive about 24% of the

current pool of social enterprises. These are the leaders under 35 years old.

Meanwhile, 28% of social enterprise CEOs are between 35 and 44 years old.

In mainstream companies, the average age is 58 years old. Female leadership

in Filipino social enterprises is common at 44% – higher than most of Southeast

Asia as well as India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, with only 20% led by women.

Nearly a fifth (19%) of social enterprises in the Philippines are in the agriculture

sector, followed by education (9%) and micro, small, and medium enterprise

(MSME) development (9%). More than two-thirds (68%) of the social

enterprises target solving the lack of jobs, while poverty alleviation (66%), local

development (63%), and empowering marginalized sectors (60%) are also top

advocacies. Social enterprises also contributed significantly to the country's

total employment by having 17,434 full-time staff in 2016 – an increase of 6%

from the previous year.

 "The results suggest an emerging and optimistic social enterprise sector

buoyed by new entrants, diversified leadership, rapid innovation, and a strong

drive to address social issues," stated the report.

Conclusion and Recommendation

Social entrepreneurship therefore is important for social and economic

development of the country. It helps in the creation of social and economic

values. It plays an important role in employment generation, economic

development, innovation, social and financial capital formation. Definitely, it is

a creative and innovative way that could enable change in a society – from an

impoverished to a prosperous Philippines.

For the growth of our society, there is a need therefore for a social

entrepreneur. One who takes calculated risk and make it possible to establish

a self-sufficient society with his passion, innovation, creativity, and drive that

could change and make a difference not just locally but also globally.

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