At the sidelines of the opening of the World Economic Forum on East Asia last Thursday, ANC’s Karen Davila asked young businessman Winston Damarillo about the drivers of the Philippine economic success. Damarillo, a WEF Young Global Leader 2010 honoree, is one of the organizers of the WEF East Asia conference in Manila and post-summit events in Cebu.
Why the country has suddenly become Asia’s newest economic tiger and is touted to follow China and Indonesia in Asia’s economic chart by 2030 is puzzling to observers who know quite well the Philippine narrative.
We endured 333 years as a colony of Spain followed by 48 years more of colonial rule by the United States plus 14 years of dictatorship under Ferdinand Marcos. After Corazon Aquino rose to power, the country experienced a period of economic stability but democracy was no ticket to economic success. One president was impeached, tried and convicted for the crime of plunder while another former leader is under hospital arrest and also in danger of being punished for grave crimes. In other words, the historical backdrop is such that the Philippines is better understood as a losing proposition, not one coming up from behind.
However, the PH economic miracle did not puzzle Damarillo a bit.
A Cebuano who traces his roots in Bohol, Damarillo finished Industrial and Mechanical Engineering from the De La Salle University and later worked for Intel in California’s Silicon Valley. He is the managing director of Amihan Global Strategies (AGSX), a strategic consultancy firm and the holding company of his investment portfolio.
Web resources describe him as “a serial entrepreneur and venture capitalist with a track record of building successful technology start-ups,” in the US and more recently in Cebu where he noted, in his interview with Karen Davila, local infrastructure including the creativity and focus of young Cebuanos in the field of information technology, culture and the arts.
In previous media interviews, Damarillo stressed his decision to come back to share knowledge and sit right close to the web developers by way of replicating the same path of his “technoprenuership,” a clear and solid strategy for inclusive growth in my own view.
In answer to Karen Davila’s question, he stressed that Cebu has contributed much to the country’s economic surge. In turn, Cebu’s success can also be attributed to its strong social initiatives. Damarillo didn’t have enough time to elaborate on the topic but I think he was referring to self-help enterprises that empower Cebu’s marginal communities and, in a broader sense, the unified efforts of Cebuanos in helping Cebu, Bohol and other parts of the Visayas rehabilitate and recover after the islands were devastated by the massive earthquake and supertyphoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan).
Social initiatives once again underlined the WEF event called Open Collaboration with East Asia New Champions (Ocean) 2014 Conference, a gathering of the world’s thought leaders and Filipino innovators held last Saturday in Movenpick Resort Hotel in Mactan, Cebu.
In the topic, “Inclusive Entrepreneurship” Manuel H. Osmeña, founder and chairman of the business conglomerate that bears his famous alias Manny O, shared how he was moved to startup an enterprise that would help enable society to pursue inclusive growth.
It all started, he revealed during the morning session, in a news conference of Ocean 2014 wherein Cebu Daily News publisher Eileen Mangubat asked what WEF could contribute in the rehabilitation and recovery efforts that are now ongoing in the provinces ravaged by Yolanda.
According to Osmeña, he immediately thought of setting up a stand-by hospital-ship that would attend to victims when disasters strike. He then lost no time asking the support of business taipan-friends, among them Luico Tan and Tessie Coson Sy, who right away went on board the project.
Over time, the hospital-ship evolved into a mobile hospital, which according to the businessman, would require all of three buses to accommodate the accoutrements and medical services of a decent hospital. The mobile hospital will be one text away when calamities strike and can be mobilized for outreaches on better days. Manny O pledged US $500,000 or roughly P21 million for the project which is expected to generate US $10 million from generous friends worldwide.
The model and module of the mobile hospitals will be presented in WEF in Davos, Switzerland next year.
I was able to talk with Osmeña during a lull in the sessions and he told me that right after his presentation, a delegate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) walked up to him to signify support for the project. Osmeña, who is also in the wine business, said he is working on a charity auction featuring his very own custom blended and branded wines. The soiree will be held in Hong Kong and proceeds from the unique auction will go to the construction of houses for Yolanda victims.