DTI mentoring program has another PWD graduate

DAVAO CITY -- Another person with a disability (PWD) has proven that determination and hard work can go a long way.

Entrepreneur Rannie Gimeno has successfully graduated from the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Kapatid Mentor ME Program this month. He is part of the latest batch of micro-entrepreneurs who completed the 10-module mentoring program.

Gimeno, the co-owner of the famous Violie’s Snack Inn at the Digos City Public Market, is one who embodies a person defying odds just to achieve his goals in life.

“Rannie Gimeno is a source of inspiration among entrepreneurs and PWDs alike,” DTI-Davao del Sur provincial director Delia Ayano said.

For 20 years, the store is famous for puto maya (native rice cake) and sikwate (dark chocolate drink).

Gimeno was one of the 19 graduates of DTI-Davao del Sur’s Kapatid Mentor ME Batch 2018. The entrepreneur-graduates have one thing in common: to develop their businesses in different functional areas.

Together, they received coaching and mentoring interventions from industry experts for 10 to 12 weeks. They were trained in several areas, including entrepreneurial mind setting, marketing, accounting, taxation, business law, human resource management, and supply and value chain.

The program also includes the mentees’ preparation and presentation of their respective business improvement plan (BIP), as a requisite to their graduation.

Asked on how the program has helped him, Gimeno said: “It helped us, business owners, a lot in terms of decision-making, especially with the record-keeping, production, and operations.”

Being a leader of the PWD sector for more than 25 years, one of Gimeno’s advocacies is to promote PWD entrepreneurship and encourage his fellow PWDs to engage in productive activities like engaging in business.

Ayano noted that Gimeno’s graduation from the Kapatid Mentor ME Program is a testimony of DTI’s goals for inclusive growth, which seeks to provide prosperity for all and ensures that no one is left behind.

Gimeno joined the roster of other PWD graduates of the Kapatid Mentor ME Program in Davao Region, including Alicia Fabiana of the Association of Differently Abled Persons (ADAP) and Allan Rasman of Mindanao Association of Muslims with Disability (MAMDI). (Jenny Mendoza/PNA)