With a passion for education, the president of Bukas, a fintech platform that provides affordable student loans, addresses the needs of the education sector
Education is an important basic human right. It helps lift generations out of poverty, as it provides access to opportunities and aids in community progress.
Unfortunately, millions around the world—particularly in the Philippines—have little or no access to it because of financial instability. In a country where poverty is rampant, children and even adults are forced to forego an education to attend to more urgent needs.
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One of the many organisations that aims to close this educational gap is Bukas, a fintech startup with a focus on education. In the past years, Bukas has teamed up with over 100 campuses in the country to provide students with affordable tuition plans. It has helped more than 17,000 students with tuition worth more than US$12 million.
President of Bukas, Jon Robert Emlano, known as JR to his peers, shared his thoughts about the change he hopes to see and why education is key.
Education has the power to change lives today as well as the future. It’s about having a more civilised society, one that’s more tolerant and makes smarter decisions. A society that doesn’t stand for lies but for vigorous debates about real issues, not gossip. Education is the main difference between an advanced society and a vibrant economy and a third-world country.
It would be untrue to say that privilege doesn’t play a role in the Philippines because it does. The moment that society places a higher priority on who you know versus what value you personally add, then privilege takes over. It is a fact that having a large safety net allows a person to take risks more than someone who does not enjoy the same privileges. It doesn’t mean, however, that we stop trying to rebalance. I think having privilege is one side of it, the other is those with less in life get tested earlier.
We cannot really ask for anything more than just opportunities. Privileged or not, it’s up to the individual to answer the call. There are many paths to the top of the mountain, but the view is always the same.
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