Sustainability assessment of community-based enterprises in selected fragile and conflict-affected areas in the Southern Philippines

Abstract

Abstract Community-based enterprises (CBEs) are generally perceived as a sustainable poverty reduction strategy in marginalized communities. In the southern Philippines, it has become widely used in poverty alleviation and rebuilding efforts in fragile and conflict-affected areas. Engaging economically disadvantaged sectors in community-based entrepreneurship is often more likely to be sustainable than participating in conventional poverty reduction programmes, but this is rarely explored. This study aimed to assess the sustainability of CBEs in terms of their social and economic benefits and operational durability. The study reveals that both contextual challenges and opportunities drive the emergence of CBEs. Most CBEs are engaged in producing and marketing agricultural products and eventually diversify into offering service-oriented entrepreneurial activities. CBEs’ locally embedded internal capacity and established external linkages that fostered ‘connections’ facilitated their operational durability. CBEs provide economic benefits through livelihood opportunities and income, expand members’ livelihood network, and create profitable products from local resources. The social benefits include addressing personal and collective concerns, enhancing collaborative problem-solving, and improving access to institutional services. This study concludes that the CBE’s social and economic benefits serve as a safety net and social protection, a buffer to drowning into a deeper poverty level. This study provides empirical evidence on the sustainability of CBEs in fragile and conflict-affected areas.