Macquarie partners with Ayala Foundation to support social entrepreneurship and youth leadership in the Philippines

Macquarie Group Foundation (Macquarie) has announced a commitment of PHP 19,000,000 via a grant partnership to Ayala Foundation (AFI) to support community social entrepreneurship and youth leadership development in El Nido, a municipality located within the Palawan province in the Philippines.

Recognising that many people around the world face systemic barriers to employment, Macquarie’s grantmaking focuses on breaking down these barriers and building effective pathways to economic security.  Through the three-year grant from Macquarie, AFI will be supporting six community-based social enterprises operating in sectors including agriculture, fishery, transport, and weaving. This will be achieved through capacity building and business innovation funding to increase these social enterprises’ income and business growth.

Aligned with the national goal of reducing poverty incidence from 18% in 2021 to 9% by 2028¹, AFI seeks to increase beneficiaries' local monthly income level to at least PHP19,000 by the end of the programme in 2028. AFI aims to expand the number of members in these social enterprises from the current 586 to 700 and include a wider group of underserved individuals.

Meanwhile, a holistic approach is needed to uplift lives with the El Nido communities. Unemployment is relatively high in the Philippines and only 74% of college graduates are employed.² AFI's youth leadership development programme focuses on job readiness and social entrepreneurship, empowering local youths to become confident leaders and better prepared for employment and sustainable livelihoods.

The programme will target graduating senior high school students and children of members from the six community-based social enterprises, preparing them for job placements. Over the course of the project, AFI aims to annually train 100 high school students to be workforce-ready within six months after graduation.

“There are huge opportunities to drive positive changes. Our latest grant provided to the Ayala Foundation underscores our collective commitment to empowering young people, women, and underserved minorities with the necessary resources and support to create better job opportunities and business outcomes,” said Jasmine Chew, Regional Head of Asia for the Macquarie Group Foundation. “This partnership is also a testament to Macquarie’s dedication in addressing systemic barriers to employment in Asia and bridging the gap between current skills and the evolving demands of the job market.”

Ayala Foundation President Tony Lambino shared, “We believe that communities thrive when they are given the means to shape their own futures. As an integrator of socioeconomic interventions, working closely with partners like Macquarie enables us to better address the needs of the communities we serve. Through this partnership, we will scale our work in El Nido by strengthening community-based enterprises and investing in young leaders to build sustainable pathways out of poverty.”

Macquarie is proud to deepen its relationship with AFI which began in 2020 when AFI was one of the 40 recipients of the COVID-19 donation fund grant. AFI received a one-off grant of $A227,000 to support three programmes that uplifted the livelihoods of farmers, disadvantaged families, and the youth community. In 2024, AFI received a Macquarie Shared Value Seed Grant Award of $A7,000 for their participation in Macquarie’s Manila Community Internship Programme. Funding was used to conduct capacity building sessions for 150 youth scholars, guiding them in setting their academic goals and soft-skills trainings so that they are better prepared in establishing their corporate internship journeys.

The Macquarie Group Foundation drives social impact work for Macquarie Group and has contributed more than $A5 million in FY24 in Asia^3,4, supporting more than 502 non-profit organisations.⁵ Across the region, Macquarie has funded 20 grant partners, working on breaking barriers and building effective pathways to employment.⁶ In 2023, Macquarie awarded the inaugural Macquarie Shared Value Award⁷, partnering with Macquarie businesses to integrate a shared value approach into existing business models and identify upcoming projects that can deliver both increased social value and enhanced commercial advantage.

About Ayala Foundation

As the socioeconomic development arm of the Ayala group of companies, Ayala Foundation is committed to building thriving communities towards shared prosperity in the Philippines. Ayala Foundation implements programs under the following pillars: Community Development, Leadership Development, and Arts and Culture. In support of these pillars, the Foundation runs a Corporate Citizenship and platform that provides opportunities to 65,000+ Ayala Group employees and its partners for meaningful sociocivic action and helps enhance community resilience through disaster preparedness and response measures. The Foundation is also making Big Bets on Early Childhood and Digital Education to address the Philippine learning crisis.

1. The Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028
2. Philippine Statistics Authority. (2023) 2023 Philippine Statistical Yearbook (Chapter 11: Labor and Employment, Tables 11.2 and 11.11). Quezon City: PSA. 
3. Contributed by Macquarie and Macquarie staff in the 12 months to 31 March 2024.
4. Contribution figures comprise Macquarie employees’ donations and fundraising; Foundation matching support for employees’ donations and fundraising; Foundation donations to commemorate employees attaining 10-year and 25-year anniversaries at Macquarie; Foundation grants to non-profit organisations to recognise 12 months of board service by a Macquarie employee; and Macquarie and Foundation grants to community organisations.
5. In the 12 months to 31 March 2024.
6. In the 12 months to 31 March 2024.
7. More on Shared Value