Change a Girl's Life Through Microentrepreneurship

Tatiana is a 22-year-old internally displaced female from Ekona, a small town in Fako Division, South West Cameroon. She dropped out of school because of the protracted Anglophone crises.  The crisis started in 2016 when she was in Lower Sixth. As a result of the crises, Tatiana and her family fled for their lives from Ekona to Buea as the conflict got increasingly violent with several lives lost. As a result of her displacement, she became homeless with no shelter or business to sustain herself.  She was fortunate to locate her struggling uncle in Buea who managed to enroll her in the Advanced Level. She sat for her advanced level in 2022 and was successful. After her advanced level, Tatiana wanted to further her education but there was no money to enroll in a university. She was supported with 10,00frs ( $ 16)by her uncle during which she started a petit business of parched groundnut. She sold by hawking around her community, especially around church premises. She could make an average monthly profit of 20,000 FR ($ 33.04) from this business.

During the identification face of our economic empowerment project, Tatiana was identified when she was frying some groundnuts for sale. She received an intensive 3-day capacity-building session from Reach Out NGO. She got trained on where she was trained in entrepreneurship, bookkeeping, savings, Sexual Reproductive Health Rights (SHR), and business management. After this, she created an account and supported it with a start-up business capital of 57,200 FRS ($ 94.50 ). After receiving this first-level grant, she changed her business to frying plantain chips, which she’ll supply in some shops around her area, and taking some to hawk around church premises. With the first level grant she received she has been able to buy a gas bottle and fry pan that she could use to fry her plantains. With this, she was making a monthly profit of 30,000 FRS ($ 49.5). The main challenge she was facing with this business was an increase in the prices of plantains. Before she received her second-level grant she had constantly followed up with the social worker of Reach Out NGO monthly during these business coaching sessions she reminded her of the best business practices. When she received her second-level grant of 114,400FRS  ( $188.99 ) she added up her business capital. As a result, she now buys business items in bulk and has also bought an extra gas bottle as a backup for business.

“Thanks to the money I received from Reach Out NGO, I have been able to enroll myself in a state University which has lessened the burden on my parents.  Due to the intensive business training by Reach Out NGO, I can operate my business with relative ease. I can now save in a bank, and do bookkeeping. My business now operates on social media, this has greatly improved my business.