If there are more accessible opportunities for Filipinos in the UAE to earn passive income using their hobbies, talents and professional skills on their free time, many will definitely grab them.
It’s a no-secret that many employers love working with Filipinos because of the obvious positive attitude shown at the workplace and the quality of output delivered. We do more and complain less, they say.
This has somehow become the brand of Filipinos in the UAE employment sphere.
Couple of weeks back, a new social enterprise was launched by four dynamic housewives who just graduated from the latest batch of Ateneo School of Government’s (ASoG) Leadership & Social Entrepreneurship program (LSE) in Dubai.
LSE is a program designed for Filipinos overseas to encourage them to become entrepreneurs by being equipped with the right leadership character and financial literacy. The program aims to change the mindset of many OFWs – that they do not have to remain employees forever – they can be businessmen or social entrepreneurs as well.
Joanna Morales, Rachel Los Banos, Christne Esguerra and Leilanie Garcia invested 10 Fridays among others, to further develop their entrepreneurial skills and eventually create a realistic business plan that gave birth to the new FEME Connect.
FEME Connect is a comprehensive directory of Filipino professionals in the UAE. The group targets to list 30,000 names of verified and confirmed professionals and talents in the country. FEME, which stands for Filipino Excellence in the Middle East, will eventually connect these professionals to businesses who require services within their forte.
For example, if you are a photographer, web designer or graphic artist, you may be listed under the Creative Workforce category. If you love planning events, you may be listed under events management section; and so on – easier for businesses to find you.
This initiative is a tiny but valuable step towards promoting entrepreneurship as well.
The free directory will be distributed to 15,000 individuals and institutions beginning second quarter of 2016.
“We are looking at reaching 150,000 people or 25% of the registered Filipinos in the UAE which is about 600,000.” – Leilanie Corpuz-Garcia, Finance and Administrative Director
“The main objective of this project is to realize our aspirations to become entrepreneurs with a social cause. The directory would serve about 150,000 people who can confidently and quickly approach the right professional or talent for their own requirements or needs like a medical professional, an accountant or an electronics and communications engineer.” – Christine Garcia-Esguerra, Sales and Marketing Director
In LSE, the students are encouraged to tap any marginalized sector in the community to promote their relevance to the society by enabling and empowering them through business activities.
Or, they can practice corporate social responsibility while doing business.
Hence, ten percent of FEME’s revenue will be donated to the wards at the POLO-OWWA in Dubai by funding a vocational training session. POLO-OWWA houses distressed and afflicted OFWs among others, who don’t have anyone else to turn to for assistance. The vocational training sessions will enable them to learn new activities that will help them recover from trauma and continue living a better life.
Another beneficiary of FEME is a community-based children’s education program in the Philippines called ANCOP or Answering the Cry of the Poor.
“The launching of FEME Connect is not purely for business purposes. The other half is to share something to society and to encourage Overseas Filipinos to become entrepreneurs.” – Joanna Austria-Morales, Operations Director
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| Reps from all LSE Dubai batches with Philippine Consulate General Officials and FEME Connect Team |
“We also believe that having a comprehensive directory of Filipino Expats in the UAE will provide them opportunities for professional growth, economic gains and most importantly it will validate them as excellent individuals in the Middle East.” – Rachel Salinel-Los Banos, Promotions Director
For Filipino professionals who want to be listed in the directory, just visit the website www.femeconnect.com and sign-up for free.
You can also follow FEME Connect on Facebook for future updates.
Finally, an enterprise that celebrates Filipino Excellence in the Middle East.
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Top photo by Gracie Binoya