Development Benefits

Free.OpenEntry.com is an initiative of www.PEOPLink.org, a non-profit development organization with the mission of helping small & medium enterprises (SMEs) in emerging economies benefit from the exciting new opportunities presented by global e-commerce.

The example of Onel de Guzman has been a major motivating force in the development of Free.OpenEntry.com .  He is the 22 year old Philippino who wrote the ILOVEYOU virus in 2000 that did 5.5 billion dollars worth of damage to computer systems worldwide.  There are scores of "Onels" in every corner of every country - talented youth with a strong desire to earn a living working at IT.  However, frustrated by their limited employment opportunities, many of the most dynamic are not focusing their creative energy to best advantage for themselves or their societies.

With Free.OpenEntry.com, thousands of "Onels" anywhere in the world can learn to create free e-commerce catalogs and then sell their knowledge of providing these services directly to countless local shops, hotels, restaurants, theaters, schools, etc. in Manila and beyond.  Since SMEs provide the bulk of employment in most countries, the benefits will be substantial.

To illustrate, a United Nations Development Program evaluation of CatGen (previous name of OpenEntry - http://sdnhq.undp.org/e-comm) in Nepal concluded that:
"The largest impact of implementing this 'pro-poor' e-commerce approach was on income and employment. Firms using it reported jobs that were directly attributable to the on-line promotion...3918 women" and that "a relatively inexperienced group of young IT professionals could, with the proper tools, create employment for themselves while providing e-commerce services to local SMMEs."

In order to raise the visibility and credibility of this far reaching initiative, thereby accelerating its dissemination worldwide, Free.OpenEntry.com is assembling high profile institutions that share our vision of democratizing the benefits of e-commerce via this initiative (including its previous incarnation as CatGen).  To date this consortium includes the following:

• World Information Technology and Services Alliance (www.WITSA.org - "members represent 90% of the world IT market") - Global IT Excellence Award for Digital Opportunity and letter stating "with much excitement WITSA agrees to be listed as an official endorser and supporter of PEOPLink's CatGen electronic commerce platform" >> see letter
  
  
• The US Council on International Business (www.USCIB.org - "combined annual revenue of USCIB's 300+ members exceeds $3.5 trillion") letter stating "fully endorse your vision of making CatGen more broadly available, and we will seek to facilitate this through our overseas business networks and partners" >> see letter
   
  
• www.UNESCO.org endorsement citing its "relevance and complementarity at promoting quality crafts from developing countries on the global market and the Internet supporting the development of small craft enterprises to master these marketing opportunities without intermediaries" >> see letter
  
  
• Global Information Infrastructure Commission (www.GIIC.org) - "The CatGen platform is deserving of the support of a consortium of public, private and nongovernmental organizations that concern themselves with bringing the promises of advanced ICT capabilities to all citizens of the world" >> see letter