Case study - business & finance
Entrepeneurship training
Malawi is ranked 126 out of 149 countries on the gender equality index by the UNDP based on the dimensions of political empowerment, economic activity and reproductive health, meaning poverty often carries a female face and disparities persist. The aim of this initiative is to 'improve women's socio-economic wellbeing through literacy levels and social skills, access to finance and entrepreneurship training'. In October 2020, five trainers were trained who then went on to choose their own venues to teach new cohorts what they had learnt through a 3 day in-person course. Plus, many used WhatsApp groups, where available, to create a platform for peer-to-peer learnings.
Despite the difficulties of the pandemic we have seen great resilience and a lot of hard work among the participants.
“The initiative is important because its providing entrepreneurship knowledge to everyone despite their education background: It’s inclusive. It empowers women to be more independent and able to do and grow their business. The content is simple and self-explanatory. It’s something that can easily be grasped by anyone using it.”
Lily's story
Lily Singano took was part of the pilot cohort in 2020 and has since seen her confidence blossom. At just 20, Lily is making maize flour from home and her entrepreneurial spirit saw her even sell some at the training itself.
New to the business world, Lily asked lots of questions, at the end of the training announced she would be launching a business she's been thinking of for a while, but only got the confidence to really start planning for thanks to the training received from Mayamiko Trust
Sure enough, in January 2021, amidst a second wave of pandemic, Lily launched her Maize Flour production business and become a keen social media marketeer too, selling through Facebook and WhatsApp.
She started with K30,000 and despite mistakes in pricing and not having enough market information, she made a small profit. She has since worked with her trainer and has gone on to selling in her neighbourhood as well as online. Her dream is to get her product registered with the Malawi Bureau of Standards so she can one day sell to supermarkets.
Her biggest takeaway from the training has been the confidence she's gained through learning about starting a new business step by step . She's also been able to do record keeping correctly, so she always knows exactly where her money is going to. Lily says what always stands out for her is she doesn't want to 'steal' from her business.
Lily is very passionate about what she's doing, and expansion is a driving force for her.
“Thank you Mayamiko Trust for the training you gave me. You built my entrepreneurial foundation and gave me motivation to do beyond what I thought I could do.”