EMPOWERING VISUALLY IMPAIRED MINDANAONS

PLDT, Smart, and ATRIEV, or Adaptive Technology for Rehabilitation, Integration, and Empowerment of the Visually Impaired, recently concluded the second run of their Digital Business Basics Training (DBBT) in Mindanao.

Twenty-five entrepreneurs with disabilities from Upi, Maguindanao del Norte, completed the 10-day workshop, a milestone in PLDT, Smart, and ATRIEV’s journey toward enabling inclusive community participation through technology.

Visually-impaired participant Sharita Sulaiman shared her appreciation for the training, “I own a small business and because of this initiative, I realized that there are a lot of opportunities for me to grow my business with the help of technology. Thank you, ATRIEV, PLDT and Smart.”

DBBT, designed for persons with disabilities, aims to bridge the digital divide by enabling entrepreneurs to perform important business-related tasks with the help of technology. The program covers the essentials of digital business, focusing on using Android Apps for business, e-wallets like Maya for financial transactions, innovative marketing strategies, and delivery apps to help entrepreneurs understand logistics and customer service.

Brian Aubrey Serrano, ATRIEV lead trainer, said, “Through this training, the participants will learn new skills that can help them to start and strategize their business. We are teaching them different online applications that could help them sell their products in Upi and all over the country.”

This engagement with ATRIEV is part of PLDT and Smart’s much broader Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Advocacy through Technology (IDEATe) program, which seeks the successful participation of marginalized sectors in the digital economy. IDEATe also contributes to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which include Goal No. 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth and UNSDG No. 10 Reduced Inequalities by empowering and promoting the social, economic and political inclusion of all, including persons with disabilities. This also underscores the PLDT Group’s commitment to innovation, and supports the government’s key digitalization efforts.