Majority of Filipinos are interested in entrepreneurship and see mentorship as an important component for small businesses, according to a commissioned survey conducted by OCTA Research.
OCTA found that 78 percent of respondents would choose to start their own business for the following reasons: the ability to manage their own time/schedule (31 percent), not having a boss to report to/get along with (30 percent), no profit limit/higher salary (16 percent), daily income/money (12 percent), and the ability to work/learn from home or anywhere (11 percent).
It also found that Filipinos appear to be more open to entrepreneurship as evidenced by the high awareness rating of the non-profit Go Negosyo, which advocates for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the Philippines.
Go Negosyo has a 68 percent awareness rating, with the Visayas region having the highest awareness (78 percent), while Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion enjoyed a 60 percent awareness rating among the respondents.
Furthermore, the survey found that respondents had a high level of awareness of what the non-profit does. More than half of those polled (54 percent) see Go Negosyo as an organization that teaches people how to run a business.
Two elements—capital and mentorship—were seen by respondents at the support that small entrepreneurs need from government, at 82 percent and 67 percent, respectively.
Mentorship was seen as important to small businesses by 95 percent of all respondents, saying it is very important (67 percent) and somewhat important (28 percent).
The OCTA Tugon ng Masa survey was conducted from March 24 to 28 using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 respondents nationwide.
The survey has a margin of error of +/-3 percent on national percentages and +/-6 percent for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.