Tatak SE: Institutionalizing the Social Enterprise Development Roadmap in Odiongan, Romblon

On July 25, 2025, the Bayan Family of Foundations (BFF) and the Municipality of Odiongan, Romblon (Odiongan LGU) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formalize their partnership for Tatak SE: Ato Kali Industries. This initiative aims to embed social enterprise development into local governance—towards sustainable livelihoods, community resilience, and inclusive progress. It also builds on earlier work between BFF and Odiongan to establish the municipality as a model Local Government Unit of the Philippine Social Enterprise Development Roadmap. 

Under the new leadership of Mayor Roger “Toto” Fodra, Jr., the Odiongan LGU remains committed to integrating SEs into local policy and practice, supported by a growing network of changemakers across public and private sectors.

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A Local Roadmap Rooted in Livelihood and Sustainability

Since 2024, with the support of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, BFF has worked alongside the Odiongan LGU to develop the Odiongan Social Enterprise (SE) Development Roadmap—a long-term, multi-sector strategy to promote community-led, enterprise solutions to socio-economic challenges in the municipality.

In March 2025, the Tatak SE: Ato Kali Industries ordinance was passed by the LGU to support and scale social enterprises in Odiongan, setting a new standard for enabling municipal governance. Through this legislation, the Tatak SE: Ato Kali Industries program was established to institutionalize social enterprises as a means to inclusive and sustainable development. It also created the local Tatak SE Council, the multi-sector body that will lead the implementation of SE initiatives.

Now, BFF and the Odiongan LGU, under the helm of Mayor Fodra, enter the next phase of implementation in Odiongan’s SE Development Roadmap Through the Tatak SE: Ato Kali industries program, they will focus on: 

• Deepening support for agri-social enterprises in coconut, cacao, eco-tourism, and handicrafts
• Clustering agri-social enterprises to enhance visibility, bargaining power, and access to services
• Strengthening local market systems and integrating SEs with LGU livelihood and cooperative programs
• Institutionalizing Odiongan’s Tatak Social Enterprise (SE) Council to ensure the continuity of reforms and support for SEs. 

Through this localized roadmap, Odiongan aims to create economic opportunities for inclusive rural growth that are both sustainable and socially impactful.

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Strengthening the SE Council and the SE Ecosystem

The Tatak SE Council will play a crucial role in embedding social enterprise development into local governance and in building an ecosystem where social enterprises can launch, scale, and sustain impact. Relative to this, BFF will support the Odiongan LGU through:  

• Mobilization and onboarding of the SE Council covering the key sectors of agriculture, tourism, women, Persons with Disabilities, youth, civil society organizations, and cooperatives
• Capacity-building of the SE Council through mentoring; operationalization assistance; and provision of toolkits for implementation, monitoring and sustainability of SE initiatives
• Policy development inputs for the LGU as it drafts local ordinances that provide end-to-end support for SEs—covering training, financing, market access, and regulatory assistance
• Linking Odiongan to the broader Philippine SE ecosystem, connecting local initiatives to national and international platforms for knowledge exchange and resource mobilization

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Ground-Level Support from Community Stakeholders

At the core of Tatak SE: Ato Kali Industries are its community-based enterprises. There is strong grassroots momentum and co-ownership of the SE agenda in the community. BFF and SPF were privileged to visit local social enterprises that exemplify community-driven innovation: 

• the Community Barangay Officials, Fisherfolks and Farmers Association (COMBOFIFA), which manages the Libertad Mangrove Forest and AquaSilviCulture Park, an ecotourism initiative;
• the Pato-o Luway Association, which makes quality brooms from tiger grass cultivated by local farmers;
• the Romblon Cacao Agriculture Cooperative (ROCACo), which produces cacao-based products from local cacao growers.

These groups play a pivotal role in ensuring that the Odiongan SE Development Roadmap is grounded in real needs and aspirations and that economic development remains inclusive and locally led.

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A Model for SE Ecosystem-Building

With a shared commitment among local government, the private sector, civil society and grassroots organizations, Odiongan is poised to build a robust ecosystem for social enterprises. As Tatak SE: Ato Kali Industries begins implementation, the program will serve as a blueprint for other municipalities on how social enterprise development in the Philippines can be institutionalized for long-term impact.