Village Enterprise
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| Founded | 1987 |
|---|---|
| Focus | Economic development |
| Location | |
Area served | Africa |
| Method | Graduation Approach |
Key people |
|
Staff | 440+ |
| Website | www |
Village Enterprise is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that equips the most vulnerable populations living in extreme poverty in rural Africa to launch sustainable businesses and break the cycle of poverty.[1]
As of 2024, Village Enterprise has helped nearly 300,000 people living in extreme poverty[2] in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congo-Brazzaville, Mozambique, and Tanzania to become entrepreneurs,[1] and 83% of these entrepreneurs are women.[2]
How it works[edit]
The Village Enterprise poverty graduation model is a one-year graduation approach that targets households living below the international poverty line and provides: access to a savings group, business training, startup cash, and business mentoring. The startup cash provided is a seed capital grant ranging from US$180 to US$300 given to groups of three entrepreneurs who launch a business together.[3] The positive impacts of the graduation approach and the rigorous evidence that supports it were highlighted by Nicholas Kristof in his 2015 New York Times article “The Power of Hope is Real.”[4]
A randomized controlled trial published in 2022 by IDinsight found the Village Enterprise program had a positive and statistically significant impact on both indicators it measured: monthly consumption and net assets.[5][6] It also estimated the Village Enterprise program to have a 534% lifetime benefit-cost ratio, meaning for every $1 invested into the program, $5.34 of income is generated by their entrepreneurs.[7] A previous randomized controlled trial by Innovations for Poverty Action that was published in 2018 and written about in Vox found that the Village Enterprise program led to increases in consumption, assets, income, as well as improvements in nutrition and subjective wellbeing of business owners and their families.[8][9]
History[edit]
Village Enterprise was co-founded in 1987 by Brian Lehnen and Joan Hestenes to show how "entrepreneurship can help the very poor create businesses and experience the dignity of long-lasting jobs."[10]
Village Enterprise hired its first outside CEO, Dianne Calvi, in 2010. Because of her impact at Village Enterprise, Calvi was honored with the President’s Award for the Advancement of the Common Good from Stanford University in 2023.[11]
In 2017, Village Enterprise launched a Development Impact Bond (DIB), the first for poverty alleviation in sub-Saharan Africa. When the results were released in 2022, the Village Enterprise DIB was shown to have succeeded, despite being implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic. The randomized controlled trial conducted by IDinsight estimated the program would generate lifetime impacts of more than $21 million for communities, around four times the overall cost of the project.[6]
Recognition[edit]
In 2021, Village Enterprise was named a winner of the Larsen Lam ICONIQ Impact Award for Refugees for its DREAMS (Delivering Resilient Enterprises and Market Systems) model.[12] DREAMS combines Village Enterprise's poverty graduation program and Mercy Corps' market systems development approach.[13] In 2023, Village Enterprise and Mercy Corps were awarded Fast Company's World Changing Ideas Award for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa for DREAMS.[14]
Also in 2023, Village Enterprise received a $7 million donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.[15] That same year, the Kenyan newspaper Daily Nation published an article about the impacts of Village Enterprise's work on an entrepreneur named Salome Lodis.[16]
In 2024, Village Enterprise's work in the Bidibidi Refugee Settlement was featured on BBC World Service and NPR's Marketplace Morning Report[17]. The 17-minute story from the BBC featured interviews with three refugees who had launched businesses in the settlement through Village Enterprise and were better providing for their children and families.[1]
As of July 2, 2024, Village Enterprise is the only charity of the 225,000 evaluated to receive a perfect score from Charity Navigator,[18] and they have also received a platinum seal of transparency from Candid.[19]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Business Daily - Uganda's refugee women turned entrepreneurs - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. 5:30. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Business Daily - Uganda's refugee women turned entrepreneurs - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. 9:40. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
- ↑ "Business Daily - Uganda's refugee women turned entrepreneurs - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. 5:50. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
- ↑ Kristof, Nicholas (2015-05-21). "Opinion | The Power of Hope Is Real". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ "Village Enterprise Development Impact Bond Evaluation Findings". IDinsight. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Saldinger, Adva (2022-03-08). "Development impact bond in Uganda, Kenya hits targets despite COVID-19". Devex. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ McManus et al. “Can poverty graduation programs make poor households more resilient during shocks? Evidence from Kenya and Uganda during COVID-19”. p. 23
- ↑ "The Impact of Variations of Ultra-Poor Graduation Programming in Uganda". Innovations for Poverty Action. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ Matthews, Dylan (2018-10-15). "Giving out cash is a great way to fight poverty. This approach might be even better". Vox. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ Maslow on Management, Abraham Maslow, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., p. 138
- ↑ Adami, Chelcey (2023-06-05). "Stanford alumni honored for work advancing the common good". Stanford Report. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ "Larsen Lam ICONIQ Impact Award". Larsen Lam ICONIQ Impact Award. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ "DREAMS: A bold, new model for lasting change". Mercy Corps. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ Hernandez, Andrea Paola. "This program is helping hundreds of refugees start their own businesses". Fast Company. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
- ↑ Browley, Jasmine (2023-04-03). "A $7M Donation From MacKenzie Scott Is Poised To Help End Hunger For 20 Million People In Africa". Essence. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ Esipisu, Isaiah (2023-08-14). "Building climate resilience through village-based banks". Nation. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
- ↑ "China goes tit for tat on tariffs". Marketplace. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
- ↑ "Most Highly Rated Charities". Charity Navigator. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
- ↑ "Village Enterprise Fund, Inc. - GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
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