Forbes features ‘Dado’ Banatao in business role in addressing poverty

This February, Forbes Philippines is featuring Diosdado “Dado” Banatao, a Silicon Valley-based technology entrepreneur who wants to stop the cycle of poverty by challenging tradition and mediocrity. He is the founder of Philippine Development Foundation which aims to build a critical mass of well-trained Filipino engineers who will make high-value products for the world market.

“The combination of where I came from and what I have done convinces me eradicating poverty can be done.” Banatao invented some of the chipsets and graphics accelerator cards that go into every PC and he believes that innovation is the only way to ensure sustained growth and eradicate poverty.

Transforming the lives of Muslim residents in the former war zone, La Frutera, an affiliate of international fruit trader Unifrutti Group, grows export-quality Cavendish bananas in Maguindanao. Senen Bacani, former agriculture secretary and president of La Frutera managed to develop the first largescale banana plantation in the Autonomous Region Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and turned it into a profitable business amid a war-torn area. He firmly believes that peace and development can happen at the same time.

In other stories in this month’s issue of Forbes Philippines, D.M. Wenceslao and Associates (DMWA) is looking to list as an integrated property developer with a 107.5 hectare business park being developed in Aseana City on a reclaimed land in Manila Bay. Also, the mobile marketing agency behind McDonald's successful mobile food delivery site is seeking to reinvent retailing - a multi-channel experience comprising the desktop site, mobile site and mobile app. Find out how buying shares in holding firms owned by the 10 richest Filipino businessmen seems a good way to make superior investment returns.

Forbes Philippines is the premier business magazine of choice of affluent business leaders, decision makers, investors, executives, and entrepreneurs. The February issue is now available on newsstands and in bookstores, convenience stores, and supermarkets nationwide. A digital edition of Forbes Philippines is also available for download on your mobile device through Apple Newsstand, Buqo, and Zinio.