{"id":57371,"date":"2025-05-01T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sedpi.com\/en\/?p=57371"},"modified":"2025-08-17T19:34:56","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T11:34:56","slug":"breaking-barriers-financing-realities-and-bold-solutions-for-social-enterprises-take-center-stage-at-nsec-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sedpi.com\/en\/breaking-barriers-financing-realities-and-bold-solutions-for-social-enterprises-take-center-stage-at-nsec-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Breaking Barriers: Financing Realities and Bold Solutions for Social Enterprises Take Center Stage at NSEC 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\u201cWe all say we love collaboration\u2014but we have to actually do it.\u201d<\/em>
\u2014Priya Thachadi, Villgro Philippines<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2025 National Social Enterprise Conference\u2019s breakout session on Financing and Resource Mobilization<\/strong> convened some of the country\u2019s most insightful voices in the impact ecosystem for an honest and energized exchange of ideas. With social finance reformers Vince Rapisura<\/strong> of SEDPI, Cauchie Garcia<\/strong> of Peace and Equity Foundation (PEF), and Priya Thachadi<\/strong> of Villgro Philippines at the helm, the panel delved into the gaps, gender dynamics, and risk dilemmas<\/strong> in social enterprise financing\u2014culminating in a call to build a new community of practice to catalyze real, systemic change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Shared Challenge: The System Isn’t Working\u2014Especially for Women<\/strong>
Kicking off the discussion, Dr. Rosalinda Odroneo from the University of the Philippines posed a pressing question: Where is the gender lens in social enterprise financing?<\/em> While women dominate the microenterprise space, many still struggle to access formal credit\u2014held back by collateral<\/p>\n\n\n\n

requirements, informal care work burdens, and an investor ecosystem that remains indifferent to their needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vince Rapisura<\/strong>, who coined the term \u201cnano-financing,\u201d<\/em> pointed to the systemic flaws in microfinance. \u201cIt has feminized debt,\u201d he argued. \u201cMicrofinance targets women, then keeps them in debt. We do it differently\u2014we teach saving, budgeting, and engage husbands in financial decisions so the burden isn\u2019t just on women.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Priya Thachadi<\/strong>, gender inequity is not just anecdotal\u2014it\u2019s data-backed. She cited findings from her organization\u2019s gender finance report and insights from the N\u00fcshu Network<\/strong>, a platform supporting over a thousand women entrepreneurs across Asia. \u201cBanks approach us with \u2018women-friendly\u2019 loan products, but nothing about their requirements actually changes,\u201d she said. \u201cThey still ask for three times the loan in collateral. Not one woman in our network has successfully accessed these so-called products.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cauchie Garcia<\/strong> shared that PEF recognizes the critical role of women in enterprise leadership and ensures their inclusion in project development and governance, though the foundation\u2019s approach centers on household and community-level financing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

De-Risking, Co-Investing, and a Cultural Shift in Capital<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A compelling question from the floor\u2014why don\u2019t we just take more risks and fail faster?<\/em>\u2014sparked deeper reflection on the inherent conservatism in Philippine impact investing<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Garcia noted that PEF is uniquely positioned to absorb risk due to its endowment fund. But even with that cushion, she emphasized the value of government partnerships<\/strong>, where development agencies could play a bigger role in co-financing high-risk, high-impact ventures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rapisura, on the other hand, revealed a strategic pivot: instead of pursuing large institutional investors who \u201cwon\u2019t even let you in the room,\u201d he turned to micro-investors and overseas Filipino workers<\/strong>. \u201cThey know our context. It\u2019s easier to get them on board because these are lived realities for them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thachadi admitted that building a risk-tolerant co-investment network<\/strong> has been uphill. \u201cIt took me three years and over a hundred rejections to raise our first half-million-dollar blended finance fund. But now we\u2019ve made it work\u2014with 12 active investors.\u201d Her key insight: collective investment cushions failure, spreads learning, and builds trust over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Call for a Community of Practice<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the session drew to a close, moderator Ron Chua<\/strong> synthesized the discussion into a powerful takeaway: bridging the financing gap requires joint action<\/em>. He proposed forming a Community of Practice (CoP)<\/strong> on social enterprise financing\u2014an open group where stakeholders can regularly meet, share tools, reflect on failures, and co-create solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearly all attendees raised their hands in support of the idea, with several volunteers signing up to launch the group\u2019s first informal gathering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe keep trying to fix the entrepreneurs\u2014but it\u2019s the financing system that hasn\u2019t moved,\u201d Thachadi asserted. \u201cIf we want to see results, we need capital that\u2019s flexible, relational, and ready to take the first step.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rapisura echoed this, adding, \u201cWe don’t just want to prevent the poor from getting poorer\u2014we want to lift them out of poverty. That requires redesigning how we fund impact.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking Ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The session ended not just with applause, but with commitment<\/strong>. The proposed CoP will serve as a platform to push forward ideas like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n