Change a Girl's Life Through Microentrepreneurship

Iren is a school dropout (primary level) who had finished learning a trade (tailoring). Due to financial barriers and the nature of her community (rural), she embraced farming as a means of livelihood. "Though the earnings from our farm produce were small, our lives were organized and we enjoyed peace though it was short-lived by the crisis as we lost our source of livelihood”.  Says Iren a 27 years old mother of 2 who have experience her fair share of the ongoing crisis. She is an internally displaced woman from Bum, a sub-division in the Boyo Division of the North West Region.

Having stayed with her children for over 3 years without school, Iren moved to Malale a locality in the Fako Division of the South West Region of Cameroon. While in Malale, Iren continued with farming as her main source of income. With little support from her uncle whom she stayed with, her children could attend a government primary school in the village”.  In March 2021, the traditional ruler of Malale was brutally murdered by unknown gunmen. This caused the community to be invaded by the Military making life unbearable for its inhabitants. With the increasing rate of security incidents recorded, Iren and her host family moved to Muea another rural community in the Fako Division of the South West Region.

With limited or no access to farmland, Iren decided to put her tailoring skills to use in her new environment. After so many failed attempts to find a paid job in tailoring, she found a shop where she could offer her services for free while doing her small jobs like mending dressing. Life became even harder as Muea is a locality that has been affected by the crisis. Many people have been displaced from the community with several returnees.

In August 2021, Iren was identified by Reach Out Social Workers. After conducting her social inquiry and she presented a realistic business plan, she was selected to be a beneficiary of Economic Empowerment. After going through entrepreneurship training where her capacity was built on Business management, bookkeeping, savings and risk analysis, Iren received the first-level grant of $60 (30,000 frs).  “this money changed my story” said Iren. Having an understanding with the shop owner, Iren bought some sewing accessories such as thread, needles, Elastic, bayas and 10 pieces of material. She stated sawing free wear (Caba) for sale.  “The business has helped me a lot as I have been able to rent a room of my own with my two children. I am

After 10 months of monitoring and evaluation, Iren progressively operated her business on an average monthly capital of $68 (54000 frs) with an average monthly profit of $60 (30,000frs). In July 2022, Iren was given an expansion grant of $100 (50,000 FRS).  “Today I am proud of my business. People come to the shop to buy things like thread, Bayas and other things from me. This additional money gave my business a new phase”. Iren increased the quantity and quality of materials she sells. She is now able to do retail of some basic accessories like thread, needles and Bayas. 

Iren is just 1 among the 100 women whom your support has been able to support economically through micro businesses in the South West region of Cameroon. Thank you so much for the support you give to crisis-affected women in Cameroon.