14th Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards to continue tradition of honoring catalysts of progress in local communities
17 May 2016, Manila – Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando M. Tetango Jr. and Citi Philippines CEO Aftab Ahmed led today’s launching ceremonies of the annual Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards (CMA) held at the BSP Executive Business Center.

Partners in Financial Inclusion: BSP Governor Amando M. Tetango Jr. (leftmost) and Citi Philippines CEO Aftab Ahmed (rightmost) flank 2015 CMA winners Ester Vitto and Jordan Inalisan.
Now on its 14th year, the awards program has been successful in recognizing entrepreneurs who have overtaken poverty with support from microfinance institutions as partners in financial inclusion and enterprise development. Funded by Citi Foundation, this nationwide search for outstanding Filipino microentrepreneurs is a partnership among BSP, Citi Philippines and the the Microfinance Council of the Philippines, Inc. (MCPI).
Welcoming guests, Ahmed in his opening remarks said: “Citi’s commitment to microfinance in the Philippines is substantiated by the $1.5MM in grants provided over the last five years for training, rewarding and encouraging microentrepreneurs to realize their dreams and to create job opportunities for people in their respective communities.”
In 2015, over 150 nominations were received from 28 microfinance institutions, rural banks and cooperatives from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, and the organizers expect to get the same support if not more for this year.
Ahmed together with Governor Tetangco serve as co-chairpersons of the CMA National Selection Committee that select the winners. Other members include industry and community leaders such as former Monetary Board member Antonino Alindogan, Jr., Ayala Corporation President Fernando Zobel de Ayala, RFM Corporation President and CEO Jose Ma. Concepcion III, GMA Network Chairman Atty. Felipe Gozon, Philippine Daily Inquirer Chairperson Marixi Rufino-Prieto, Commission on Filipinos Overseas Chairperson Secretary Imelda Nicolas, and University of the Philippines-Diliman Chancellor Dr. Michael Tan.
“The objective is to encourage microenterprises to build banking relationships that will help them grow for the long term. The end goal is for microenterprises to eventually transition into small and even medium enterprises. We want MSMEs to develop to their full potential and to help drive economic growth that is broad-based and inclusive,” said Governor Tetangco.
The awards are open to microenterprises with assets worth PhP300,000 to PhP3 million. The award categories are Microentrepreneur of the Year Award, regional awardees from the three major island groups (Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao) and special awards for agri-microbusiness and community leadership.
This year, the organizers are introducing two more award categories: Youth Microentrepreneur of the Year to be awarded to an outstanding microentrepreneur between 15 to 30 years of age and special award for green/sustainable business, which will be given to a microenterprise that operates and advocates for environment-friendly business processes.
The national winner of the Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards will receive PhP200,000 while the three regional awardees, the youth awardee, and special awardees will each get PhP100,000. The loan officers and MFI branches of each awardee are also entitled to a cash incentive of PhP10,000 while semi-finalists will receive a cash incentive of PhP10,000.
Beyond the award ceremonies, the CMA also ensures that awardees receive access to supplementary tools that can help them take their businesses to new heights. Aside from receiving microinsurance coverage and 9-day entrepreneurship training at the Citi Microenterprise Development Center, CMA winners will also be entitled to one laptop and basic computer training. They also gain automatic membership to the CMA Alumni Network to build their market connections and participate in a mentoring program that will help them further improve their businesses.
CMA was introduced in 2002 as Citi celebrated its centennial in the Philippines and in Asia. Since then, it has been adopted as a global program and introduced to over 30 countries. Over the last decade, it has recognized over 100 Filipinos, a number of whom have grown their businesses significantly in terms of profits and assets.