Creating Capital: Women's Association Opens New Doors for Entrepreneurship

Most members of the communities in the Lower Amazon, where CEN is currently working, have few options for accessing capital. Access to financial capital helps the poor increase income levels, build viable businesses and reduce financial vulnerability. Entrepreneurs need capital to invest in equipment and materials to run their business. Today, their most common source of funds for starting and operating entrepreneurial activity is through their own savings by borrowing from family members either living in or outside the community; however, this is often not enough to start or grow a business.

Microfinance is recognized around the world as a promising solution to improve micro-entrepreneneurs' access to capital however few microcredit operations have been implemented in the Lower Amazon. The Banco da Mulher is the only known Rotating Saving Fund to have been successful in the region and has the potential to be a powerful model throughout the Brazilian Amazon, where over 40% of a population of 13.5 million live on less than $2/day.

Through this project CEN, AOMT-BAM, an association of women's groups serving the region, as well as local partners will:

• Evaluate the bank's success and document the Bank as a model for the region
• Strengthen the AOMT-BAM
• Stabilize the Banco da Mulher and help it become more sustainable
• Strengthen the sustainability of the 52 members of the bank, and their projects by:
  • Strengthening a foundation of basic skills and mindsets to become more self-reliant.
  • Strengthening business and entrepreneurial skills which will help them run their own businesses better.
• Help hundreds more entrepreneurs in the region who need capitol to establish or expand their business, by facilitating the establishment of similar rotating savings funds with other groups throughout the region.

This initiative is now entering into the first phase. This discovery phase will set out to assess the association and the members' specific needs, along with the successes of past projects. This information is needed to ensure that the project meets the stated objectives, and will greatly facilitate replication of the rotating savings fund around the region. Learn more.

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