THE Metrobank Foundation Inc. (MBFI) and the Ty family-owned GT Foundation Inc. (GTFI) turned over P40 million worth of development grants to 32 partners yesterday.
“Our contributions will benefit 12,000 individuals nationwide, but the work doesn’t stop there. Our story doesn’t end there. We must recognize that our role extends beyond implementing projects. It’s not enough that we follow the trends; we must also be committed to shaping them. In a rapidly changing world, we need to think ‘business unusual,’” MBFI president Aniceto Sobrepeña said.
“What we are turning over today joins a long list of investments in the development sector since 1979, and collectively, we hope these investments will contribute to nation-building and ultimately create impact in the quality of life of Filipino families,” he added.
With the theme “Engaging Partnerships, Empowering Communities,” the George S.K. Ty Grants turnover marked the strong collaboration among development organizations with the collective goal of empowering communities to address challenges, especially in the areas of health, education, arts, culture, and livelihood.
MBFI has partnered with Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc. to expand the latter’s Roots to Shoots Program, a three-year comprehensive initiative against malnutrition that will tackle the nutrition, water access, sanitation, and livelihood needs of 345 parents/caregivers and their children in Pasacao, Camarines Sur.
MBFI has also linked arms with Food for the Hungry Inc. in continuing to address the issue of malnutrition in eight barangays in Eastern Visayas, targeting 110 beneficiaries composed of parents and school children.
The foundation has partnered with the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction to set in motion their sustainable and healthy food system through the provision of seeds and equipment and establishment of diversified home gardens for food self-sufficiency that would benefit 250 families with pregnant and lactating women in Guinayangan, Quezon.
Meanwhile, GTFI has partnered with Save the Children Philippines to address the growing incidences of malnutrition in Matuguinao, Samar as well as with Communities for Alternative Food Ecosystems Initiative (CAFEi) in imparting knowledge and skills on food trade, food preparation practices, and food consumption to 100 families in Cebu City and Northern Cebu.
Clean and potable drinking water is the priority of Planet Water Foundation in its partnership with GTFI, focused on deploying a water filtration system, while simultaneously implementing its hygiene education program to 1,800 individuals in Quezon Province.
The family foundation has also renewed a partnership with Cure Philippines in providing physical and spiritual care for 60 Filipino pediatric patients with repairable deformities in Davao City.
Likewise, GTFI will continue to aid the Metrobank Group’s premiere healthcare ally, Manila Doctors Hospital, through assisting indigent patients confined in the hospital and in-house, surgical programs for patients requiring surgical interventions such as cataract surgery, removal of goiter, uterine tumors, gallbladder stones, and repair of hernia.
“In the long run, our work is about the mother and child who will be able to overcome barriers to good nutrition and experience improved health and well-being. It’s about artists who would get the freedom and platform to share their art and advocacies. It’s about the farmers and fisherfolk in a remote village who would have access to sustainable agricultural practices and improved livelihoods. It’s about young children who will get the opportunity to attend school and dream of a brighter future, because they are getting quality education,” Sobrepeña said.
“Let us continue to forge ahead, armed with the conviction that our actions today lay the foundation for a story that ensures a brighter, more sustainable, tomorrow,” he added.
