MPIF, Neo Zigma, IGEM support PEACE KAMP 

Metro Pacific Investments Foundation Inc. (MPIF), the corporate social responsibility arm of leading infrastructure conglomerate Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC), pledged its support to the Pinatubo Eco-Adventure and Cultural Enclave Katutubong Anak ng Mount Pinatubo (PEACE KAMP) through its Puhunang Pangkabuhayan program for alternative livelihood.

Through a beneficiary partnership with the organizers of the 1st Philippine Cycling Festival, Neo Zigma Cycle Corporation and Interval Gear Events Management (IGEM), MPIF received 60 commuter bikes in a turnover event last June 5. The donation was equivalent to 20% of the generated cash sponsorship, registration fees, and ticket fees from the expo. 

“Our goal to uplift the lives of Filipinos is more within reach if we engage in meaningful partnerships with organizations that share our purpose,” said MPIF President Melody del Rosario. “We are grateful that we, Neo Zigma, and IGEM are mutually powered by passion and their support for our program takes us one step closer to changing more lives.” 

For Our Kababayang Katutubo

With the goal of rehabilitation and resurgence in mind, MPIF developed Puhunang Pangkabuhayan to become a sustainable alternative livelihood program to benefit out-of-work individuals and income-generating people’s organizations by providing the necessary tools to get them back on their feet.

Sharing a mutual objective to alleviate the hurdles faced by vulnerable and marginalized sectors, MPIF and PEACE KAMP intends to collaborate on alternative livelihood opportunities that will create long-term benefits for the community.  

PEACE KAMP, an independent, non-partisan and non-profit organization, was created to address the lack of opportunity and poverty confronting the Aetas of Sapang Uwak, who like other rural communities, are impacted by the effects of and fallout from insurgency, volcano eruptions, and neglect. 

Cycling for a Difference

Neo Zigma, the exclusive distributor of SHIMANO in the Philippines and sports event organizing company IGEM organized the 1st Philippine Cycling Festival and Adventure Expo held last June 3-5, 2022 at the Clark Parade Grounds. The event, intended to promote cycling through race events, cycling education talks, merchandising exhibit, with kid-friendly and family-friendly activities, gathered the biggest local and international brands relevant to the sport, with the end goal of raising funds to donate bicycles to several communities in the country. 

“Our love for cycling goes beyond seeing it as a sport, as it has become an opportunity to help our countrymen pedal forward and power through,” says IGEM Managing Director Christian Alacar.

With the theme ‘Love every ride, grow with it’, the Philippine Cycling Festival bolsters the positive cycling culture in the country, while also becoming a ground for all participants to invest in meaningful programs through MPIF. 

“Together with MPIF, we use our passion to support our local communities, so they may likewise achieve their goals and pursue their own aspirations,” said Neo Zigma Marketing Head Josephine Santos.

As of June last year, Puhunang Pangkabuhayan has provided over 110 alternative livelihood tools such as bicycles, sewing & edging machines, pocket Wi-Fi units, and load retailer kits to areas in Batangas, Oriental Mindoro, Surigao del Norte, and Pangasinan.

The partnership with Neo Zigma and IGEM towards Puhunang Pangkabuhayan is aligned with Gabay Kabuhayan, one of the MVP Group’s Gabay Advocacies for a Sustainable Philippines. It is also in line MPIC’s efforts to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly 1 No Poverty and 17 Partnerships for the Goals.

This partnership bolsters MPIF’s role alongside MPIC, as the largest catalyst for a Sustainable Philippines, aimed to improve the lives in the country through providing essential services and mobilizing advocacies that uplift the quality of life of all Filipinos.