Name of the project:            

Location:                                  

Client:                                     

Kind of project:                    

Participant entities:       

Project run time:         

Beneficiaries:                         

"EntreTodos" Project promoting the development of micro-enterprises in rural communities in Guatemala".   

Guatemala                              

Codespa                                 

Micro-credit for Women Entrepreneurs

Codespa, Fundacion Limmat    

2017 - 2018 

500                        

In eastern Guatemala, in some of the poorest areas of Guatemala, the Codespa Foundation has financed and led the "EntreTodos" project, which sought to improve the living conditions of 828 destitute women.

In a first phase (2016-2017) Codespa trained 500 women with financial and technical training. In order to achieve the objectives, CODESPA has begun a second phase of the project (2017-2018) focused on serving 485 women, through two interventions aimed at:

1) 350 women entrepreneurs (beneficiaries of the first phase of the program) who received financial training, technical assistance in business management and marketing. Of these, 255 women received reimbursable credits; and 95 women received financial training and access to credit.

2.) 135 women joined the EntreTodos project, of whom 35 women received financial training and 100 women who, in addition to financial training, received technical training for their business.

In order to determine the impact of the project on the beneficiaries, changes in their living conditions have been evaluated using the Economic and Social Welfare Index (IBES) developed by Swissocial.

In the present study, we compared the data from evaluation 1 of the second phase (which constitutes the baseline) with those of evaluation 2, the first ex-post. The studies were carried out by a group of expert interviewers from the Codespa Foundation.

The results are encouraging for those who in addition to financial education received professional training, which significantly improved their lives. Not so for the group that received only financial training, which did not suffer changes in their lives.

The professional training, financial and commercial training gives the beneficiaries a life project that they begin to travel, producing a positive impact on them.