Tacloban vendors group signs deal with Pag-IBIG Fund

TACLOBAN CITY, Feb. 12 (PNA) –- About 6,000 vendors in this city will join the list of Pag-IBIG members after the largest group of small traders in the region inked a deal on Friday with the state-run Home Development Mutual Fund (HMDF).

Pag-IBIG Fund Tacloban Members Services Branch Head Alectys Bajarias said this is a big step towards encouraging more members from the informal sector to achieve financial stability.

“Under the memorandum of agreement, the association will facilitate the registration of their vendor-members and the remittance of their contributions to Pag-IBIG,” Bajarias said.

The HDMF or known as Pag-IBIG Fund signed the deal with Tacloban Supermarket Vendors Federation led by its president, Elizalde Ladrera during the Pag-IBIG Day celebration at the Robinsons Place Tacloban.

The enactment of Republic Act No. 9679 or the HDMF Law of 2009) mandates that membership to the Fund shall be mandatory to self-employed working groups with a monthly income of at least PHP1,000.

“The minimum contribution is PHP200 monthly, but they can contribute more if sales are high,” Bajarias added.

Ladrera said this the first time that market vendors in the city will participate in the program. Most of them have no savings accounts in banks and other financial institutions.

“Many of us spend our income right away without thinking of saving for the future. Through this, we will be able to save regularly and this would also allow the Fund to extend to our members its benefits such as the multi-purpose and housing loans,” Ladrera said.

The federation has 36 affiliated associations with about 6,000 members engaged in trading meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, cooked food and dry goods.

Next year, the Pag-IBIG Fund Tacloban office is targeting to enlist multicab drivers as beneficiaries. In 2015, several tricycle drivers joined the Fund.

The government targets big group informal sector to avail HDMF programs.

“If we go through the association, we are assured that they would actively contribute to the Fund. We can attend their meetings and collect contributions there so they don’t have to transact in our office,” Bajarias explained.

Pag-IBIG is eyeing to enlist about 10,000 members of the informal sector in the next few years through partnership with federations.

The Tacloban office covers this city, several towns in Leyte province, entire Eastern Samar province and some parts of Samar province. (PNA)

FFC/SARWELL Q. MENIANO