Electric dreams
 26 August 2008

.
LONG before China electrified billions of TV viewers with that ‘One World, One Dream’ opening gala at the Beijing Olympics, our 119 Electric Cooperatives (EC’s) were already dancing and singing "Together in (their own) Electric Dreams."

It was no different at their 16th Consultative Conference under the aegis of the National Electrification Administration (NEA), which was held at about the time the two-week Beijing extravaganza got underway.

With a total of 477 participants, mostly general managers and presidents from ECs in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, the full-day conference was just as colorful as Beijing, though not as lavish.

As Cabinet Oversight Official for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) Development, I was invited to update the ECs on the microfinance programs of government. With me was Dennis Morong, Assistant Vice President of People’s Credit and Finance Corp. (PCFC), to explain the mechanics of microlending. PCFC is the lead GFI or government finance institution for the deployment of loans in the microfinance sector.

Microfinance has changed the lives of many, and propagating it has been one of the many fulfilling challenges in government. Under my MSME oversight function, I have seen and heard enough of those stories, featuring a number of them in my media programs. I am sure that after our briefing, the benefits and bright prospects under microfinance will be shared to the millions of EC customers, each of whom is a potential success story.

Beyond the natural fit of microfinance and rural electrification – after all, the ECs power the microfinance industry that drives the economy that fuels growth in the ECs – the invitation of Presidential Adviser for Rural Electrification Fr. Francisco ‘Pacquing’ Silva, a dear friend of mine and Conference host, is not to be taken lightly. Quite literally and figuratively, Fr. Pacquing is the country’s leading light in rural electrification.

Also on hand to share with the ECs their ‘electric dreams’ were NEA Administrator Edita S. Bueno and Energy Regulatory Commission Chair Zenaida Cruz-Ducut.

In the conference, implementers of the rural electrification program shared vital information on the fast-paced developments in the industry. It is also their forum for consultation and the exchange of ideas and best practice to ensure that their industry prospers and thrives in the new competitive environment. Stakeholders were given time to air their views, leading to a collective assessment that would improve the country’s EC program.

NEA was formally created on August 04,1969 under Rep. Act No. 6038. As part of the national strategy for countryside mobilization, total electrification of the country was entrusted to the ECs. These cooperatives were mandated to provide adequate, reliable and low-cost electricity to the countryside.

In June, 2004, the NEA Board of Administrators redefined its mandate, vision and mission to reflect the NEA’s enhanced role in the power industry. The new mandate is to continue total electrification on an area coverage basis, enhancing the capabilities and competence of electric cooperatives as utilities in a deregulated environment. On the other hand, NEA’s mission is to provide quality financial, institutional and technical services to electric distribution utilities, particularly the ECs it serves.

The country’s rural electrification program is on-track to its goal of 100 percent barangay energization by the year 2009. Rural electrification is one of the priority concerns of the President, as reflected in her 10-point agenda. NEA, together with the119 ECs nationwide, remains the prime mover in the electrification sector, energizing 34,682 or 96.26 percent out of 36,030 barangays, as of December 31, 2007.

As we light up the countryside and connect sitios and households to the grid or off-grid power sources, the ‘electric dreams’ of Fr. Pacquing, NEA Administrator Edith Bueno and ERC Chair Zeny Cruz-Ducut, come closer to fruition.

[TOP] [HOME]