Hospitals, frontline workers, communities and families continue to receive support and assistance from the Tulong Kapatid, the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) consortium of the companies under the leadership of Manuel V Pangilinan.
“When the world found itself in such unprecedented situations, of cities in lockdown and countries under quarantine, the lifeline that kept communities functioning was communications such as digital capabilities and opportunities. School children could keep studying and have more access to e-learning essential tools. Under these very constrained circumstances, it became clear which basic services are truly essential – the various relief assistance to communities in both the metro and far-flung areas. Our Group commits to support the government and the frontline workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Pangilinan.
Ramping up digital education efforts
In line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of providing quality education, Tulong Kapatid continues to ramp up its digital education efforts to help schools and communities ensure that no learner is left behind.
PLDT, the Philippines’ largest and only integrated telco company, recently launched a webinar series to the women of three upland communities in Arakan, North Cotabato. The initiative aims to promote gender equality and equip the Arakan women with skills to access and use digital technology. The seminars, held in cooperation with the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) serve to launch the telco’s new digital campaign. The project, to run for five months, also aims to assist women with children in facilitating home-based, modular learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To enable various sectors in the new normal of online teaching and learning, PLDT, through its Infoteach Outreach Program, also conducted a webinar series called “Gearing up for the New Normal in Teaching and Learning”. In partnership with the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU), the webinar series is a milestone that aims to uplift the country’s new digital education system.
In support of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Basic Education-Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP), Smart Communications, Inc., (Smart) is working with the Central Visayan Institute Foundation (CVIF) to ensure that the teaching and learning process continues despite the pandemic through the CVIF-Dynamic Learning Program (CVIF-DLP). The CVIF-DLP is a Smart-backed and DepEd-endorsed crisis-resilient independent learning strategy that applies to any or a combination of DepEd modalities – online, modular, TV, and radio.
Smart also recently kicked off #CyberSmart – an online cyber security and internet safety caravan supported by the National Privacy Commission, that aims to educate students and teachers all over the country on how to protect their digital life. The caravan will enable participants to log into a virtual hall with interactive booths and games while learning how to identify threats online.
Meanwhile, the PLDT-Smart Foundation (PSF) and Smart enabled the students of Quezon City Science High School (QCSHS) by providing them with quality e-learning opportunities. Pre-loaded Smart LTE Pocket WiFi units were turned over to scholars who do not have the resources to purchase broadband connectivity for their online classes.
The One Meralco Foundation (OMF) also completed its solar electrification of seven off-grid island schools in Samar. The Philippines’ largest electricity distributor Manila Electric Company (Meralco), through the OMF, is currently installing 1-kilowatt solar PV systems in seven more schools in Masbate. This is part of the foundation’s school electrification program, a core advocacy that has already brought electricity access to 245 public schools in far-flung areas nationwide.
Equipping frontline workers
The Group also promotes good health and well-being by continuing to support the country’s frontliners. To date, the Tulong Kapatid, through the PSF and OMF have distributed over 60,000 liters of alcohol to hospitals in Metro Manila. Thousands of face masks and various PPE, including hazmat suits, gloves and face shields, have also been turned over to hospitals and government response teams to aid frontline workers.
The MVP Group of Companies recently partnered with the Department of Health (DOH) to champion its BIDA Solusyon sa COVID-19, a campaign that aims to educate Filipinos on the best hygiene practices and promote positive behavioral changes to ensure safety in the new normal.
PLDT and Meralco also jointly donated medical equipment to the East Avenue Medical Center (EAMC) in Quezon City to help increase the hospital’s capacity to handle COVID-19 cases.
Meralco also works round-the-clock to ensure a safe, adequate, and reliable supply of electricity to the Solaire-PAGCOR Mega Quarantine Facility. The 525-bed center located in Paranaque City, is the biggest quarantine facility in Metro Manila and is one of the additional COVID-19 facilities to serve Metro Manila, Bulacan, and the Calabarzon Region. Powering quarantine and treatment facilities is one of Meralco’s priority projects this year, as it continues its relentless support to the government and to the private sector in the fight against COVID-19.
The OMF also donated 41 desktop and three laptop computers to the molecular laboratories of the Philippine Red Cross to support its COVID-19 testing operations, and 20 desktop computers to the Philippine Genome Center at UP Diliman, which analyzes samples from various COVID-19 patients so scientists can further study the virus.
Maynilad provided free water given to major quarantine facilities. These include Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Philippine International Convention Center, World Trade Center, MOA Arena, Palacio de Manila, Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Bagong Nayong Filipino. To add to the country’s testing capacity, Maynilad donated an RT-PCR Testing machine worth P15M to Delos Santos Medical Center. It also recently donated Contactless Handwash stations to local government units (LGUs) amounting to P850,000.
Meanwhile, Metro Pacific Water partnered with hospitals from Zamboanga City and Butuan City as they provide rapid test kits for testings and laboratory usage of the LGUs
Reaching out to communities
To promote food security and livelihood opportunities that can help alleviate poverty, the Metro Pacific Investments Foundation (MPIF) recently launched Bayan Tanim! an initiative that aims to equip communities and displaced workers with the capacity to grow vegetables at home. In partnership with the Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Training Institute (DA-ATI), Bureau of Plant Industry, and AGREA Agricultural System International Inc., MPIF has distributed Bayan Tanim Agricultural Starter Kits to Brgy. 128 in Smokey Mountain, Parokya ng Pagkabuhay in Novaliches, San Lorenzo Ruiz Parish in Culiat and Epiphany of the Lord Parish in Caloocan.
Smart is also working with DA-ATI in the continued roll-out of its Digital Farmers Program via online training sessions to promote the use of digital technologies in agriculture.
The Alagang Kapatid Foundation Inc. (AKFI), along with some members of the Tulong Kapatid has reached out to 98 communities and over 24,000 families across Metro Manila. With the current public health situation, AKFI prioritized the provision of food packs to the most vulnerable sectors of society — street dwellers, daily wage earners, informal economy workers (e.g. street vendors, pedicab drivers, etc.), and those who receive little to no assistance from the government.
Over 1,000 underprivileged families of Kapit Bisig Community in Brgy. Bagbag, Quezon City have also received vegetable packs from PLDT-Smart Foundation. The turnover is in partnership with AKFI, AKAP Pamilya, Parokya ng Pagkabuhay, San Lorenzo Ruiz Parish, Pedro Calungsod Parish and Immaculate Conception in Quezon City. The food packs from the PSF contained various vegetables and rice, as requested by the families in need, living in these communities.
PLDT, through its Enterprise business, introduced a solutions bundle designed to help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) get their businesses back on track through its MSME Stimulus package. The offer allowed customers, who subscribed to the service from July to September to enjoy the Group’s newest fiber broadband service BEYOND FIBER and wireless broadband Smart BizLTE for free for their first three months of use.
Enabling organizations
Since PayMaya launched the #OneAgainstCOVID19 campaign in March, PayMaya has helped raise over P26 million for 42 non-profit organizations that it has equipped with donation acceptance via PayMaya's donation site, app, and digital QR through this initiative.
The #OneAgainstCOVID19 campaign is a multi-platform and cross-sectoral initiative that aims to raise funds for various organizations and causes that are helping to combat the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. Non-profit organizations were equipped with PayMaya's online solutions to easily reach out to the public and raise funds for their respective initiatives. With this, donors from all over the world can easily contribute to a cause of any of PayMaya's partner organization through visiting donate.paymaya.com, going to the Pay Bills page of the PayMaya app, or scanning PayMaya's partners' QR code.
