By PNA and U.S. News Agency / Asian

The sari-sari store “Hapinoy” project of MicroVentures Inc., co-founded by Presidential Cousin Bam Aquino, has won another award for its support of low-income entrepreneurs in rural areas-this time from the India-based “Sankalp” Awards

Hapinoy (for happy Filipino) is the 2012 overall winner for South East Asia, the largest Social Enterprise Awards in India. It recognizes some of the most innovative, sustainable and scalable businesses in India and in Southeast Asia.

Hapinoy storeowners are in the countryside through education, personal development programs and other business opportunities. The Hapinoy Program is operational in Batangas, Bicol, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, Bondoc Peninsula, Rizal, Bulacan, and Mindoro.

Each year, Sankalp receives more than a hundred nominations from for-profit emerging businesses across five sectors: Agriculture, Food and Rural Business, Education, Clean Energy, Health, Water & Sanitation and Technology for Development.

For the first time, Sankalp added a category for South East Asia, wherein Hapinoy came on top. Mark Ruiz, Aquino’s Hapinoy co-founder and President of MicroVentures Inc., went to Mumbai to receive the prize in mid-April.

“It is such an honor for Hapinoy to receive this award, given the quality of the other entries in Southeast Asia… this award further emboldens us to pursue our vision of positively impacting our microentrepreneurs and the communities that they serve.”

Aquino said, “We are so honored to receive this award. This recognition will help us introduce the Hapinoy Program and the Philippines to the rest of the world.

Sankalp is the latest in the roster of recognition of international awards, including those given by the United Nations Project Inspire and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.