Presidential
Adviser for Entrepreneurship Jose Ma. “Joey” A. Concepcion III
has officially received the prestigious Padma
Shri award from India and was
the sole recipient from the Philippines. He
received the award from India President Ram
Nath Kovind last April 2, 2018
in Rashtrapathi Bhavan, New Delhi, India,
following the announcement in January this year that he was one of the awardees
during the official visit President Rodrigo Duterte and his business
delegation.
The
Padma Shri award is
the fourth
highest civilian award given by the government of India every year
during India’s Republic Day.
Concepcion was recognized for his significant
contribution to micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) development in the
Philippines and across the ASEAN region.
Concepcion said the unexpected recognition
was a most pleasant surprise. He shared, “This award is a surprise as I was not supposed to go to India but
decided to go instead two days before the expected departure. Back then I did
not realize that I will be an awardee. In fact, even my taxi driver was proud
to meet a Padma Shri awardee.”
“This is a reconfirmation
that we are on the right path of helping our micro and small
entrepreneurs," he
added.
The Indian government conferred the Padma
awards on 84 individuals including one awardee from each ASEAN
member-country.
Minister of External Affairs Smt. Sushma
Swaraj said Padma awardees had worked hard in their respective fields
without any expectation of returns from their communities.
Concepcion was also congratulated by
entrepreneurs and business organizations including the Philippine Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce of the
Philippines, Management Association of the Philippines, Federation of
Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Finance Executives of the
Philippines and the ASEAN Business Advisory Council.
Concepcion proudly shares the recognition
with all entrepreneurship advocates in the country. “I share this honor with the entire Go Negosyo community, including our
mentors, sponsors, conglomerates, and advocates," he declared.
“I also share this award
with former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who gave me the chance 13 years
ago to be her adviser on entrepreneurship, leading to the birth of Go Negosyo,
and of course to President Rodrigo Duterte for giving me the chance to once
again push for programs that will give everyone a chance to succeed. I also
thank our cabinet secretaries who are working with us on various programs and
most especially Secretary Ramon Lopez, who was once my executive director
during the start of the Go Negosyo advocacy," Concepcion added.
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