Teachers all around the country will soon have easier access to a financial account and learning resources in one app as Gabay Guro, the flagship advocacy program for teachers of the PLDT-Smart Foundation, partners with PayMaya for its super app for teachers.
Through the Gabay Guro app, teachers can soon easily sign up for a PayMaya account which they can use for various digital financial transactions such as paying for online and in-store purchases, sending money, paying bills, buying load, and paying government fees, among others.
This will complement the existing features of the app, which provides them access to research materials, community-wide articles, rewards, as well as online lessons to help improve their teaching skills in the new normal.
“Providing teachers a PayMaya account within the Gabay Guro app will help enrich the resources available to them, especially as they adapt to our new normal which is increasingly digital. Combined with various learning and other resources available within the app, we are confident that this new platform can help improve their day-to-day teaching lives,” said Gabay Guro chairperson Chaye Cabal-Revilla.
On top of these features, the app will also offer other capabilities such as the ability to receive badges that can be converted into MVP Rewards, availing of promos and training sessions from Gabay Guro partners and mentors, and access to livelihood programs.
Soon, they can also receive cash assistance, incentives, and loans designed for educators and even get additional livelihood opportunities in the e-commerce space through their PayMaya account within the Gabay Guro app.
For his part, PayMaya founder and CEO Orlando Vea said: “Having a digital financial account will help complement the wealth of resources for teachers that will be available in the app. As we all transition to digital, it’s important that we empower our teachers with the right tools and resources so that they are able carry out their work well, for the sake of all Filipino youth everywhere.”
“The Department of Education has always acknowledged the Gabay Guro program and the PLDT Group as an important partner of the education sector. We’re happy that the Gabay Guro app, together with PayMaya, will provide our teachers with a holistic platform that will empower and help them thrive in the new normal,” added Department of Education Undersecretary Tonisito Umali.
Digital financial services for education
Enabling teachers with digital financial accounts and capabilities is just the latest way that PayMaya is empowering the education sector. To date, it has enabled over 50 educational institutions all over the country with cashless payments acceptance, allowing schools to conveniently accept tuition payments from parents at the comfort of their homes. At the same time, this mode of payment helps keep school personnel safe by eliminating risks of cash handling in light of the current public health situation.
These efforts are in response to the Department of Education’s directive to implement blended learning that utilizes both online and in-person modalities for education, where students are encouraged to utilize online classes, printed modules, and educational TV and radio broadcast as main learning channels this school year.
Schools enabled by PayMaya with end-to-end digital payment solutions such as PayMaya Checkout online payment gateway and the PayMaya One all-in-one Point of Sale (POS) device include major learning institutions such as the University of the Philippines, the Ateneo De Davao University (ADDU), La Salle Green Hills, Don Bosco Technical Institute of Makati Inc. (DBTI-MAKATI), Nord Anglia International School Manila (NAIS Manila), Malayan Colleges Mindanao (MCM), and University of Immaculate Conception (UIC), among others.
Aside from these digital payment innovations, PayMaya has also rolled out cashless payment ecosystems starting with the PayMaya-powered student ID card in schools including University of the Philippines-Diliman, LPU-Batangas, La Salle Green Hills, and STI, among many others. Students can easily link the PayMaya-powered student ID card to their PayMaya account and maximize for payment transactions even outside the campus at Bancnet-powered payment terminals and ATMs nationwide.
PayMaya is the only end-to-end digital payments ecosystem enabler in the Philippines, with platforms and services that cut across consumers, merchants, and government. Aside from providing payments acceptance for the largest e-Commerce, food, retail and gas merchants in the Philippines, PayMaya enables national and social services agencies, as well as local government units, with digital payments and disbursement services.
Through its app and wallet, PayMaya provides millions of Filipinos with the fastest way to own a financial account with over 40,000 Add Money touchpoints nationwide, more than double the total number of traditional bank branches in the Philippines combined. Its Smart Padala by PayMaya network of over 30,000 partner touchpoints nationwide serves as last mile digital financial hubs in communities, providing the unbanked and underserved with access to services. To know more about PayMaya’s products and services, visit www.PayMaya.com or follow @PayMayaOfficial on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Gabay Guro is spearheaded by the PLDT-Smart Foundation and PLDT Managers Club Inc. The 12-year old program empowers teachers across the country though initiatives in seven key pillars. This includes scholarships, teachers’ trainings, classroom donations, livelihood programs, connectivity and computerization, teachers’ tribute, and digital innovations.