Coop Markets
Establishing wet and dry markets within social housing sites in Metro Manila as a source of affordable food and basic goods and business opportunities for community members.
In Manila, Philippines, an estimated 4 million people are living in informal slum areas without decent housing or access to clean water and sanitation. Many of these informal settler families (ISFs) live along the banks of dangerous flood-prone inner-city rivers
The Philippines government’s “People’s Plan”, a joint initiative between national and local government agencies and NGOs, aims to resettle of informal settler families from danger areas in Manila to social housing sites with promised access to basic services like education, public transportation, healthcare, electricity, and water. In reality, however, access to these services is often limited. Though positive action is being taken by the government, big challenges still remain.
Though government housing sites provide safe housing, other basic community needs are not being met. Relocated communities lose their livelihoods and community resources, such as markets, overnight. Dana Asia helps to facilitate essential community development by establishing coop markets to bring new business opportunities for market vendors and affordable goods for community members.
Why Coop Markets?
Create new economic opportunities for market vendor small businesses.
Improve access to affordable basic goods for community members.
Increase GDP at a community level with increased economic activity.
Coop Markets Impact
How do we do it?
We facilitate training in business management and market organisation to develop business operations manuals and identify appropriate spaces for community markets.
Through partner GPMI, we improve access to microfinance and financial literacy training to enable business startup and growth.
Mobilisation of cooperative leaders and community members to form social business teams to focus on business development within the housing site.
Coop Markets Success Stories
We have successfully tailored and implemented the Coop Market model for several impoverished Philippines.
Coop market microfinance project enabled Mariza Tejerero to start a vendor business
Mariza Tejerero is a 52-year-old market vendor living in the SRCC government socialised housing site where she has lived…
Do you want to make an impact through this social business model?
US$6,900
to set up 15 mobile vendor carts as a coop market in a social housing site to increase income opportunities and food security.