In a year when incomes dropped around the globe, TechnoServe’s nearly 300,000 clients and their families recorded a collective income increase of $188 million. Our 2020 annual report takes a closer look at the impact our clients achieved last year despite tremendous obstacles and shares stories of their resilience.
Micro-retailers play an important role in local communities by providing essential goods and services. However, these entrepreneurs also face numerous obstacles when running their businesses, and those challenges only became more acute during the COVID-19 pandemic. Enter Judith Namayi Amboka, a community mobilizer dedicated to helping entrepreneurs in her community access the knowledge and tools they need to thrive.
In northern Nigeria, gender norms often limit women’s abilities to control resources, including land and finance. A TechnoServe program is helping women rice farmers like Rahma Umar increase their incomes and opportunities through improved rice production.
Numbers show that when entrepreneurs receive support, they can innovate, adapt, and overcome enormous obstacles. But there are millions of entrepreneurs in the world still facing the prospect of losing their business amid the lingering crisis. Civil society, government, and the private sector must work together to reach these women and men.
In this series, we check back with TechnoServe program participants previously featured on our blog, documenting how their lives have changed and progressed. In our previous story on Juliana Solís Barón, an entrepreneur and café owner in Peru, she was learning how to reinvent her business in response to strict lockdown restrictions. Find out how she is doing now, five months later.
In this series, we check back with TechnoServe program participants previously featured on our blog, documenting how their lives have changed and progressed. Catarina Bié is a small business owner in Maputo, Mozambique. After receiving digital business training from TechnoServe, Catarina learned how to adapt her business to survive the crisis. Find out how she is doing now, seven months later.
In Mozambique, women often face barriers that limit their ability to achieve financial independence. TechnoServe is working to identify economic opportunities for women and find business partners with the incentive and ability to break down the barriers Mozambican women face on a daily basis.
On Monday, March 8, the world will celebrate the tremendous achievements of women across the globe. In the last year, the COVID-19 crisis has illuminated the essential role women play in society and the disproportionate burdens they carry in their everyday lives. Read five inspirational stories of women leaders who have overcome significant challenges to create a brighter future, then vote on your favorite story.
While this year has challenged all of us in so many ways, it has also allowed us to see how interconnected we all are – no matter who we are or where we’re from. How has COVID-19 affected your life? Take our poll, then meet TechnoServe clients – smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs in the developing world – who are experiencing similar situations.
In this series, we check back with TechnoServe program participants previously featured on our blog, documenting how their lives have changed and progressed. In Mozambique, women-owned businesses have been particularly hard-hit by COVID-19. In our previous story on Juliana Mário, a small business owner in Maputo, her sales had decreased by over 50% from the start of the pandemic. Find out how she is doing now, eight months later.
