Distributing technology to the last mile has obvious challenges, from collecting repayments to the physical barriers to distribution, such as communities becoming cut off during rainy seasons.
However, basic household goods always find their way into these remote markets. In the Philippines, it is through sari-sari stores, which exist almost everywhere and offer a selection of everyday needs, including coffee, bread, rice, and vegetables. Over 800,000 of these stores exist, making up 30 to 40 percent of retail sales in the Philippines.
EMPOWERING ENTREPRENEURIAL WOMEN
After leaving Mindoro, I spent some time with Hapinoy, a social enterprise based in Quezon City, Metro Manila. Hapinoy works to empower women and mothers who run these sari-sari stores, often from their homes. They offer skills-training courses, access to micro-capital, and the opportunity for new business, supporting women to become successful micro-entrepreneurs.
Their training, or Sari-sari Negosyo Training Program (SNTP), takes place over 10 months, with a day-long session each month. The women learn about setting prices, managing inventory, and assessing cashflow. After about six months, the women will have developed their sales and inventory log. At this point, they may have the option of applying for loans to expand their inventory to include high-impact products and services, such as solar lights.
EXPANDING THE DISTRIBUTION NETWORK
Providing these technologies in small retail stores would be comparable to Kopernik’s Tech Kiosk network in Indonesia. In Kopernik’s own words:
“TECH KIOSKS ARE FAMILY-RUN SMALL SHOPS (WARUNG), THAT SERVE AS MINI-GENERAL STORES IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. WE BRAND THEM AS A TECH KIOSK AND EQUIP THEM WITH THE BEST TECHNOLOGY DESIGNED FOR THE DEVELOPING WORLD. TECH KIOSK OWNERS CAN RECEIVE THESE TECHNOLOGIES ON CONSIGNMENT IN ORDER TO STOCK THEIR STORES. WHEN THEY SELL TECHNOLOGIES THEY EARN A MARGIN, RETURN THE COST OF INVENTORY TO KOPERNIK, AND ORDER MORE OF THE TECHNOLOGIES MOST IN DEMAND.”
Connecting with the Hapinoy program could potentially fill a void in the solar light distribution and sales network in the provinces of the Philippines. During my time in Mindoro, I clearly saw the need for more solar light technology. But distribution was limited by the isolation of remote communities: many people could not travel to the family farm school to buy a light, or return it for repairs. Also, GIYF-FFS staff in San Mariano, Mindoro did not always have the time or means available to travel to more remote communities to demonstrate and market the lights.
REACHING THE LAST MILE
Once, back in December, we traveled for nearly an hour by motorbike through streams and across rocky trails to reach a small community in Bongabong, Barangay Lisap. During rainier months, this subsistence farming community can be difficult to reach and is frequently cut off from other towns and villages. It had rained earlier in the day, so the level of the streams was quite high on our journey. When we reached the community, we had to get off the bikes, cross a stream, and hike up a rocky embankment to the actual village.
When we arrived, the families we had come to visit were in the mountains harvesting crops such as cassava, coconut and bananas. If the solar lights were available through local sari-sari stores, it could cut down on transportation costs and open up the possibility of payment through instalment for customers in the last mile.
Sari-sari store in San Mariano, Mindoro, the Philippines
Barangay Lisap is difficult to reach during the rainy season
Safety first: Kopernik Fellow Catie Howe rides on the back of a motorbike to reach a remote mountain community outside of San Mariano, Mindoro, the Philippines.
One of the obstacles during a river crossing
