Ramon Magsaysay Awardee continues to reach out the poor

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Last August 31, 2008, the 2008 Ramon Magsaysay Awarding Ceremony was held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Roxas Blvd., Manila. The awardees were: Grace Padaca, governor of Isabela province, Philippines - awardee for government service, Therdchai Jivacate from Thailand - awardee for public service, Prakash Amte and Mandakini Amte from India - awardees for community leadership, Akio Ishii from Japan - awardee for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts, Ahmad Shafii Maarif from Indonesia - awardee for peace and international understanding, Amanda Galappatti from Sri Lanka - awardee for emergent leadership and CARD MRI, the only institution in the list of awardees, for public service. Things started from a desire to assist landless rural women... Jaime Aristotle Alip, who was oriented with microfinance during his stay at the Philippine Business for Social Progress, started the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development in 1986 along with Dolores Torres, Lorenza Bañez and Aniceta Alip. CARD started out with an old desk, three chairs, P20 and an old typewriter. Together with their wits and the strong desire to really make an effective change to the landless rural people, CARD was able to get its big break when the Asian Community Trust supported CARD’s program to implement economic assistance to landless rural workers in San Pablo City and Bay, Laguna. In 1988, CARD was able to witness the operation of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh which led to its adoption of the Grameen methodology. And more than twenty years after… As years passed by, CARD has evolved into CARD – Mutually Reinforcing Institutions to effectively address the needs of CARD’s clients. The CARD MRI is composed of several units, providing essential services to the poor people and having the same goal as its mother-company. CARD is continuously reaching the marginalized by going into hard-to-reach areas where few MFIs dare to serve like the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. CARD also has its liaison office in Cambodia. The awards... The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation recognizes CARD MRI’s successful adaptation of microfinance in the Philippines, providing self-sustaining and comprehensive services for half a million poor women and their families. As a recipient of the prestigious Magsaysay awards, CARD MRI has raised the profile of the microfinance sector to a higher level.