Training for Success

During August and September, we trained six new groups to receive funding, from over seventy individuals. All group members completed a five-day training that covered farming as a business, gross margin analysis, how to select successful microenterprises, record keeping, selling, and marketing. All group members also created individual business plans that were evaluated and approved by our Micro Enterprise Program Coordinator. A major component of the training is learning the importance of paying loans on time, or in advance, and how to resolve conflicts within the group and promote good group dynamics. In addition to the business and financial components, group members also receive a full day of health education which includes topics such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, and registering for health insurance. All group members have the opportunity to purchase subsidized mosquito nets for their families and have access to our free health services.

We are so proud that all group members attended and actively participated in the training and are enthusiastic about establishing their own microenterprises. The majority of microenterprises will be agriculture-based, including tea farming, dairy farming, poultry farming, and banana farming. A smaller percentage of individuals will establish retail shops for foodstuffs and clothes, hair salons, and tailoring businesses. We look forward to following these groups as their businesses grow and their families progress!