| About UPLIFT |
Vision-Mission/Specificity/Our History/Our Specific Approach/Our Coverage/The Organization
In
1993, the staff of Inter-Aide of France went to the Philippines to identify
the poorest communities in Metro Manila and find new means to combat poverty.
The town of San Jose, Navotas, north of Manila, is reported to be one of the
densest and most impoverished urban areas in the country, and here the organization
discovered that what the poor truly wanted were not dole-outs or temporary interventions,
but the chance to have their own businesses. Coincidentally, microfinance was
gaining popularity; Inter-Aide saw the opportunity to use it to address the
need of the Navotas residents.
In the same year, Inter-Aide Neighborhood Business Association, or NBA, was
born. Microfinance was adapted to suit the urban setting--individual collection
and liability were the key features of the NBA microfinance system, coupled
with entrepreneurial services. After only two years, NBA was awarded the 'Talang
Parangal' (star of honor) by the Planter's Bank 'Gintong Tala' (golden star)
Awards in recognition of their new system of microfinance. At this point, NBA
has helped more than 700 families and the program was expanding. At about the
same period, Link, another project initiated by Inter-Aide, began to offer business
training and support in job hunting.
Before
the end of 1998, Link and NBA merged to form the Urban Program for Livelihood
Finance and Training (UPLIFT).This merger paved the way for a more holistic
approach to community development. Whereas NBA mainly operated inside Navotas,
UPLIFT now included Caloocan, Manila, Malabon, Quezon City and Bulacan Province,
and improvements to the service were implemented.
Every month since 2004, the organization maintains 7000-8000 partners who receive
loans for their small businesses through 17 branches, aside from the numerous
recipients of trainings and social services.
UPLIFT hopes that in the future, more urban poor people will be empowered through
microfinance, skills and knowledge.
As a microfinance NGO, UPLIFT:
This approach focuses on our goal of improving the lives of our beneficiaries, while also maintaining our sustainability.
UPLIFT
also stresses upon the partner the importance of self-responsibility.
-Each partner is responsible for his/her own loan
-Loan Collection for the Calma Program is home-based
-Loan Collection for the Bulazon Program is group/cluster-based
This methodology promotes self-reliance and prevents issues
that a group-based liability may encounter.
The coverage of UPLiFT is divided into 2 geographical Programs in Northern Metro Manila. CALMA, with 11 branches, is composed of the cities of Caloocan, Manila, Malabon, and Navotas, while BULAZON covers Quezon City and the province of Bulacan and has 6 branches.
The branches of UPLIFT are located in the heart of the depressed communities, and whenever possible we expand and extend our services within these areas.
UPLIFT is composed of people dedicated to the service of the urban poor and specialized in their respective fields.
At the administrative level is the General Assembly which <DESCRIPTION HERE>. The Board of Trustees is composed of <DESCRIPTION HERE-NOT THE NAMES BUT THEIR ROLE>.
The Executive Director <DESCRIPTION HERE>.
The Central Finance and Administration is directly under the supervision of the ED. The FA Director oversees the operations of this division, which monitors the financial status, guidelines, and other administrative concerns of the programs.
The Resource Network provides the support services to the Calma and Bulazon programs. The RN also assists the UPLIFT Network members in implementating their microfinance services. Together, the Executive Director, RN Managing Director, FA Director and the two Managing Directors form the Executive Committee which formulates and implements policies and approves proposals concerning the programs.
*CBS-Capability-Building Services
*NC-Network and Communications
At the Program Level, the Managing Director oversees the operations of the Head Office and the branches. The Internal Auditor ensures financial accuracy while the Administrative Officer is in charge of <DESCRIPTION HERE>. The Finance and Admin Manager handles all the loans and savings of the branches, and the Head Office's accountants and encoders.
The Area Manager directly supervises the status of the branches. The branch itself is composed of one Branch Manager (BM) and, under her, up to three Loan Development Officers (LDOs). The BM and the LDOs provide the beneficiaries their necessary loan and collect the payments from them, thus performing the basic and most essential tasks in microfinance.