May you all have a very…

The Workshop Coordinating Team came up with the following tentative topics for Day 2’s work group discussions to guide the participants:

This is my first time to reach Malaysia.  I arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport last night at exactly 8:06 pm with my colleagues from Manila.  I heard the prices here in Malaysia are relatively cheaper.

I have not bought anything yet as of this moment, as we are still busy doing the logistics preparation for the workshop which runs from March 10 until the 14th.  I had breakfast with my colleagues early this morning in an Indian restaurant nearby Menara Wesley, the venue of the workshop and the same place where I stay. Our group walked along the commercial district, but most of the stores are still closed.  Before the end of the day, I will have to buy office supplies. Then I shall have the my initial basis for finding out myself if prices are really cheaper here.

Definitely, I will find time to go around and shop before going back to Manila.  I would love to buy souvenir items from Malaysia and bring them back to the Philippines. Will post my observation on  the “pricing” here in my next article.

It was 6:30am when I woke up yet it looked and felt like 4am. At 7:00 am the sun was not in sight and the streets were quiet. I had a short but surprisingly restful sleep considering our late arrival (Jiji Rodriguez, Sandra Honrado, Hilda Panganiban and I arrived at Menara Wesley at 10:30pm), a late night meeting, and dinner at midnight. We (Jiji, Sandra, Hilda, Paul Casuga, Ian Naldo and I) were treated to a traditional Indian breakfast of roti canai (yummy!) and tea tarik (a must try!) courtesy of Sir Ben Quinones at a downtown Indian resto. Running late for a scheduled 9am meeting with Ed Canela, we walked back to the hotel in the rain with no shopping bags in tow (how sad! – according to Jiji).

   

So now it’s back to work. As a fitting intro to the web portal (www.aa4se.com), Ed introduced the group to blogging. A first-time blogger myself, it was interesting to be able to have an online journal of my personal learning journey here in KL. On a more serious note, blogging is a very empowering tool and can bring all solidarity economy stakeholders together (exactly what the web portal intends to do in the first place). So now we are ready to blog all day.

Looks like the “work” part of the Workshop in well under way. I wonder when we can get to do the “shop” part?

A total of 9 participants from 5 ADFIAP member-institutions in Cambodia, India, Bangladesh, Vietnam and the Philippines have responded to the invitation of CSRSME to participate in the Regional Workshop on Financing SMEs with CSR Agenda to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from March 10-13, 2009.

The program is a platform for DFIs to learn what social finance for SMEs with CSR is all about—its parameters, requirements, financing hurdles and barriers, etc. ADFIAP is hopeful that the program can generate understanding among its member-participants and could lead them to develop financing portfolios for social enterprise in their respective institutions.

ADFIAP is the focal point of development banks and other financial institutions in Asia and the Pacific. It currently has 100 members from 40 countries and territories.

Eunice briefly met Ben and discussed the arrangements for Tuesday. She will come and check with the group on the canteen preparations and meet the caterer as well for additional briefing. She also explained that while no one is allowed to eat in the room, the caterer will provide drinks and coffee in the room. She also discussed the provision of internet facility inside the Multi-Purpose Hall (MPH) beginning Tuesday morning. Finally, she prepared the reception table in the Hall.

Ben looked at the list of participants and checked who will sit where and with whom. It was a tough job even if the question was deceptively simple. We suggested that everyone should have a comfortable place where he or she can maximize participation and interaction. Then, we settled for the rule that country representatives must be well distributed and should not be together with their country-mates. Ben had to re-check twice or thrice until he felt that the group will not only coalesce as a learning team but also insure maximum exchange of experiences. 

One of the most important persons who helped the group in arranging the room and insuring its security is Mr. Lee Wachai. He speaks little English with lots of Malay Chinese in between. He compensated his communication difficulties with his activeness, fast action and knowing where is what in the room. As Ian commented, Mr. Lee is fast and knows everything in the Multipurpose Hall (MPH). In addition, Mr. Lee cautioned the group about room security. He suggested that all valuable equipment and materials should always be taken out of the room. He also worked Paul on the lighting system. Fully satisfied, the team left the room at 4:00 pm. Mr. Lee closed the room and will only be reopened on March 10.