Written by Christian Viñas
The 2nd ASEAN Youth Entrepreneurs Carnival recently ended, but the lessons learned from the guest mentors live on.
2017 was a milestone year for the Philippines as we hosted ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) on the occasion of its 50th Anniversary at the PICC (Philippine International Convention Center) in Manila. Philippines hosted the 2nd ASEAN Young Entrepreneurs Carnival this year, which gathered a lot of interested persons from the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
Young entrepreneurs and delegates had the opportunity to network and participate in dialogues with other young business people across the ASEAN and other partners, such as Singapore, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Malaysia, to name a few.
Various speakers engaged the youth through innovative and engaging approaches and with helpful pieces of advice from the speakers’ own encounters in their entrepreneurial ventures.
The youth wrote their beliefs and opinions on the freedom wall at the PICC
Present were DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez and Undersecretary Ms. Nora K. Terrado. DTI highlighted programs and events that saw ASEAN efforts to include MSMEs in their long-term plans and visions.
Panel discussants were brought together to discuss, investigate, or decide on a particular matter, especially in the context of business or government. The program included:
#FORCEBEWITHYOUTH by Mr. Ramon M. Lopez who talked about economics and how MSMEs can help each other in the long run.
Big Brother Knows panel led by Mr. Joey Concepcion, chairman of ASEAN Business Advisory Council, and Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Rommel Gerodias, the chairman of ASEAN Young Entrepreneurs Council and the President of the Philippine Young Entrepreneurs Association.
#BAE: Behind the ASEAN Economic Community—this interactive session informed and educated the youth about the ASEAN Economic Community and its vast opportunities for the ASEAN Young Entrepreneurs and ASEAN Youth. In addition, this session also explored the dynamism and collaboration between ASEAN and its dialogue partners in terms of young entrepreneurship. Discussants included Ms. Alma Argayoso, Mr. Syed Nabil Aljeffri, Ms. Eleanor Mak, Mr. Hans Lukiman, and Mr. Wu Youjian.
AIESEC PH energized the crowd before the start of the second half of the program.
#YOLO: Youth on Limitless Opportunities presented inspiring success stories of young entrepreneurs and their personal journey through hardships and success to be where they are today. The discussion tackled guidance on the youth’s role in shaping the future, inspirational advice to motivate and encourage their participation, and views in terms of the opportunities that can be gained from the ASEAN Economic Community and ASEAN Dialogue Partners. The session was led by Ms. Ces Rondario of Impact Hub Manila, speakers include Ms. Audrey Pe, Mr. Vince Golangco, Mr. Kesavan Sathyamoorthy, and Mr. Gigih Septianto.
#LOL: Leaders on Lending a Hand in partnership with the National Youth Commission—this session focused on how young entrepreneurs create social impact through building sustainable social enterprises. It started with acknowledging the power of collective dreams and community collaboration to empower local communities and ended with pushing for passion, purpose, and impact on profit and income. The moderator for this panel was Mr. Brian Tenorio and the panel’s speakers include Ms. Cherrie Atilano, Mr. Prim Paypon, Ms. Tal de Guzman, Mr. Henry Motte-Muñoz, Mr. Liza Diño, and Ms. Kim Lim.
#BOOT: Building On Our Testimonies was led by DTI Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado who chairs the ASEAN Committee on Business and Investment Promotion (CBIP), expressed her delight at the turnout of the event.
With this celebration of ideas, MSME’s future in the ASEAN Community and the future of the Southeast Asian youth entrepreneurs is looking bright and ready on taking the world of entrepreneurship by storm.
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