Mercedez Osayan

Mercedez Osayan is shown in the picture posing with the motorcycle she intends to convert into a tricycle because, with the additional sidecar, it can shuttle more passengers in one trip than just a two-wheeled vehicle. Mercedez lives in the village of Brgy. Canggapas Anahaw, Hinigaran, Negros Occidental. She is 44 years of age and married to Romeo, who presently works as a security guard. The couple is blessed with two children: her elder, a 21-year-old daughter, now works abroad and sends money home to help the family. The younger, who is 14 years old, is in high school. Mercedez knew that she could never provide her children with a better future if the family just relied on the small salary that her husband earns as a security guard; it was not even enough to properly feed the family. So she drew on her own talents and, with complete faith that God loves her and her family and would bless her endeavors, she took the plunge and became a micro entrepreneur.

When she started, Mercedez wasn't very ambitious. Her plan was just to open a business that could supplement, even in just a small way, her husband's income and probably improve their quality of life somehow. She joined NWTF-Project Dungganon in 2006 to borrow 3,000 pesos start-up capital for an electronic reloading business, selling E-load* to prepaid subscribers of mobile phone service companies.

As her income improved, she opened a refreshment shop serving local merienda (snack time) fare like batchoy (a pork and noodle soup popular in the Western Visayas region), pancit molo (wanton-wrapped pork dumplings cooked in chicken broth) and other snack fare. The new venture is symbiotically compatible with her eload business as customers in one business tend to patronize the other just because they are already in her shop. The food patrons who need load for their mobile phones buy it from her instead of going to another retailer, while load buyers stay to eat her snacks. The new venture has increased her income exponentially and it has also made Mercedes realize that she actually has good business instincts. Her later loans allowed Mercedes to improve and expand her businesses, and even to buy a motorcycle, which provides her with additional income as it shuttles passengers around the town. The businesses earn a net income of 3,000 pesos per month, which helps her pay for the education of her son and also cover some of the family's daily expenses.

Mercedez borrowed 12,000 pesos with her previous loan, and she was able to pay it back in weekly installments without any delays. She is borrowing 15,000 pesos now on her seventh loan cycle. She plans to use the money to buy a sidecar for the motorcycle to increase its income potential, and she also intends to use any money left over for the other business ventures.

*Eload - is a service that allows prepaid mobile phone subscribers to buy load from retailers so that they can continue using the mobile phone service when they have consumed the service credits on their cellular phones. Demand for this kind of service is high because cell phones are a must-have for most Filipinos, but the low-end market prefer the prepaid service because there are no fixed monthly charges; the availability of the cellphone service depends on the amount of load credits they purchase. Retailers get a percentage commission from the load amount they sell.

About NWTF:
In a world full of challenges, Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation, Inc. has answered the call of not just a few, but thousands of women. Through the alleviation program, these women have progressed from earning less than a measly $1 a day, to realities surpassing their dreams. They have learned to live a life that can finally be called honorable. This is Project Dungganon!

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