Assistance to healthcare medical workers

Provided shuttle service for healthcare workers of MPIC hospitals from 5:00 am until 7:00 pm.

Disinfection protocols

UVC technology was adopted in the disinfection and sanitation activities for the Light Rail Vehicles (LRVs) at the revenue line and depot. Advance filtration technology using high efficiency particulate air and activated carbon filters was utilized for the air conditioning units (ACU) of the LRVs, the former to address particles of 0.3 μm while the latter for particles <0.3 μm. The fresh and recirculated air compartments of the ACU were installed with UVC lamps for disinfection. These measures were in addition with the strict implementation of physical distancing, mandatory face masks and face shields, no eating, talking and use of mobile phones inside the train. Provision of alcohol dispensers, thermal scanners and isolation areas at the stations; disinfection of end terminals and frequently touched areas are among the measures implemented.

Assistance to specialized medical centers

Donated over P4.2M worth of virus specimen collection tubes, vitamins, and personal protective equipment such as nitrile gloves, goggles, coveralls, and full PPE kits to over 14 hospitals, healthcare centers, quarantine facilities, and local government offices, including the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM), the Philippine Genome Center, and various facilities in Mindanao.

Aid to Batangas coastal and tourism workers

Launched OPLANILAO program which initiated alternative livelihood and cash-for-work projects to support workers in the coastal resource management and tourism sectors of Batangas affected by the closure of beach resorts during the quarantine.

Agroforestry for forest reforestation

As part of GBP’s reforestation program, local communities living within the adopted forestlands in Cebu and Iloilo were taught agroforestry as an alternative livelihood to the more destructive slash-and-burn practices.

Kapwa

Livelihood partnership with the entrepreneurial mothers of STM Tondo, which organized women into the Kapwa Producers Cooperative and trained them in the production of soaps, shampoos, fabric conditioners, dishwashing liquid, and other home care products. In 2020, the program pivoted to producing alcohol and disinfectants.

Green Badge

Since 2016, this uniform upcycling program has given extra income to a group of women seamstresses at STM Riverview in Quezon City. The program taught the women to repurpose old Maynilad uniforms into decent clothing for disaster victims, drawstring bags, gadget pouches, coin purses, and various types of pillows.

Sining Ipo

For several years now, about 30 Dumagat artisans from the Ipo Watershed in Bulacan have been transforming driftwood into everyday products like gadget stands, candle holders, and fruit
bowls, as well as corporate giveaways like wine racks.

Social Enterprise Pivot

Samahang Tubig Maynilad (STM) is an ongoing community-based program that provides informal settlers with access to safe water at subsidized rates.

Since the program began in 2009, Maynilad has organized 13 STMs and 13 Pag-asa sa Patubig Partnerships in many cities within its concession area and improved the quality of life of 5,283 families.

In 2020, Maynilad partnered with two STMs to pivot their livelihood programs by focusing on the production of “pandemic essentials”. The Kapwa program of STM Tondo in Manila generated P2.22 million in revenues by producing alcohol and hand sanitizers, while the Green Badge program of STM Riverview in Quezon City generated P1.47 million of washable face masks.

These two STMs enabled some 300 beneficiaries to continue earning an income despite the economic difficulties brought about by the pandemic.

SCTEX Green Charcoal

Provided 100 farmers of the Magsikap Farmer Association Inc. with additional income by helping them recycle sugarcane waste into green charcoal.

Bayan Tanim

To support the ‘Plant, Plant, Plant” program of the Department of Agriculture and the “Move Food Initiative” of AGREA, this program assisted 100 families in Pasay and Manila by encouraging them to grow their own vegetables safely at home. Metro Pacific Investments Foundation (MPIF) distributed 500 crates to seven communities, in partnership with First Pacific Ltd. Co. and LRMC.

Parokya ng Pangkabuhay

Provided financial support to Parokya ng Pagkabuhay for their alternative livelihood sewing program to provide their parishioners (solo parents, young mothers, and unemployed individuals) with a source of income.

Shore It Up!

The Marine Protection, Inspection, and Conservation (MPIC) Guardians is an initiative that is focused on training and equipping local fisherfolk and bantay dagats from our partner coastal communities to become stewards of the marine environment, while also serving as an alternative livelihood opportunity. MPIC guardians in Puerto Galera and Medina were continuously provided with their monthly allowances, as well as two waves of support in the form of grocery packages to help sustain them and their families amid the pandemic.

Support for Deped’s Brigada Eskwela and Oplan Balik Eskwela

In 2020, the Department of Education (DepEd) rolled out a new framework for its traditional back-to-school programs and called on the private sector to support initiatives on remote or blended learning and improving capacity of schools to address health issues. MPIC’s companies are long-time partners of these programs. Meralco is one of the members of the 2020 task force for Oplan Balik Eskwela. Meralco reached out to 2,595 public school teachers in 58 schools to provide them with personal protective equipment. GBP distributed printers and printing supplies to adopted elementary schools in Iloilo, Aklan, and Mindoro in aid of blended learning. Maynilad continues to participate in DepEd’s widely-supported Brigada Eskwela program by adopting schools in 2020. Besides providing assistance in refurbishing classrooms, our volunteers also upgraded their water and sanitation facilities. We also took advantage of this opportunity to orchestrate the siphoning of campus septic tanks in some barangays.

Solar energy for off-grid schools

For almost a decade, this electrification program of One Meralco Foundation has installed solar PV cells in 245 public schools in far-flung villages in the country and connected these off-grid schools to the internet. It also provided laptops and multimedia equipment to help modernize learning processes. In 2020, the program faced difficulties during the first half of the year but regained momentum by July when travel restrictions eased down. It accomplished its target of energizing 15 schools in Masbate and Samar, which benefited about 175 teachers and 4,489 students.

Energy Education Program

Launched in 2015 and designed to complement the off-grid school electrification program, this program aims to improve awareness on energy conservation. It provides teachers with programs and tools, such as Energy Ed Kits, to teach the young about the efficient and responsible use of energy.

Daloy Dunong Online

This flagship Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) education program has been teaching the youth on daily life skills like handwashing even before COVID-19. It went virtual in 2020 in response to physical distancing and other quarantine measures. Daloy Dunong Online held webinars with educators on creative techniques to teach children about the importance of WASH in the fight against the pandemic. About 1,200 teachers and community health officers were trained by this program.

Ginhawa Gardening Online

Before the pandemic, green lifestyle workshops were held to train residents and recipients of Maynilad’s vertical vegetable gardens to grow their own food and become more aware about the environment. In 2020, these workshops moved online and mobilized gardening experts to teach a growing number of homebased enthusiasts on the proper watering of plants, hydroponics, enriched potting preparation, drip irrigation, and other vegetable gardening techniques.

Improving English literacy skills

In partnership with Binhi English Literacy Foundation, over 20 grade school pupils from Marcelo Marcela Elementary in Pasay City became the first beneficiaries of this student-centered learning designed to improve English reading, writing, and comprehension skills.

Mano Amiga

Mano Amiga is a non-profit organization established in 2008 that has developed into a highly impactful social development program with support from MPIF. This partnership remains intact and continuously grants scholarship programs.

Timbayan

Repurposed plastic containers of water treatment chemicals used by Maynilad into the common timba (pail). More than 2,100 buckets were donated to Cavite P3 communities, Quezon City marketplaces, Muntinlupa public schools, and urban poor communities in Manila’s Isla Putting Bato.

Assistance assistance to communities affected by Taal Volcano and typhoon Ulysses

Provided relief assistance to about 2,500 families in five municipalities affected by the Taal Volcano eruption in January 2020. MPTC also extended assistance to 14 LGUs in Region IV that were affected by typhoon Ulysses in November.

Bikeways Project

This project, which started in 2019, seeks to integrate bicycles into the public transit system. When quarantine measures temporarily discontinued the operations of LRT-1, LRMC immediately installed additional bike racks in all of its stations in support of this program. In September, LRMC employees worked with volunteers from the Pasay City government and local bike groups to paint a 1-km bikeway along Arnaiz Avenue leading to the LRT-1 Libertad Station.

Cleanest Barangay Contest

This initiative inspired four barangays in Manila (Barangay 188, 189, 190, and 145) to advocate for a cleaner environment and less waste going into waterways. Cleaning supplies were given to each participating barangay.

Station Donation Drive

Passengers were encouraged to donate hygiene kits, clothes, drinking water, medicine, blankets and sleeping mats, N95 face masks, and nonperishable food for the Taal Volcano eruption victims and evacuees.