In the Summer of 2009, Nourish International- Austin Chapter sent 5 members to El Jicaro, Guatemala.
After spending the entire year fund raising through a variety of venture projects, we were able to send along with those five members 2,500 dollars for a project in conjunction with Students in Free Enterprise- University of the Valley of Guatemala (SIFE-UVG). IMAGINA- Incorporando Mujeres a Generar Ingresos con Nuevas Acciones (Incorporating Women to generate income with new action) The goal of the project Nourish was to help a group of women in El Jicaro become self sufficient financially. 32% of the women in Guatemala live in extreme poverty. Due to the societal structure, most families rely on the male head of the household for income. However, when jobs are scarce and the economy is faltering, women need to be able to make money in order to bring food, continue sending their children to school, and other such household expenses. |  |
The group of women SIFE-UVG had set the project up with were making soaps and shampoos to sell in the local market place each week. These soaps and shampoos were a homemade in a particular woman's shed.
Nourish was primarily involved in the following:
Nourish was primarily involved in the following:
- Surveying the shampoo/soap making process- Looking for ways to make the process more efficient, safer for the women, more professional, as well as comfortable
- Surveying the work area- For hazards and possible poisonous chemical combinations
- Observing the market place interactions- What type of advertising could be used? What type of marketing skills would make the products more appealing? What type of people were the women trying to appeal to with their soaps and shampoos?
- Negotiating a contract with the Guatemala City Hotel
- Finding a way to package the soaps and shampoos in smaller packages for bulk processing for hotels
- Writing a manual for making the soaps in shampoos with full illustrations of the processes
- Helping the products look appealing to the Guatemalan public with full and complete input from the women themselves
- Making the entire organization look more like a small start up company in order to bring some feeling of legitimacy that would be appealing in the market place
- Running workshops on -private financing and banking; marketing tips; advertising tips; and basic business tips
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Nourish-Austin spent three weeks in El Jicaro, and in their own words have described it as one of the most amazing trips and experiences they have ever had. The very last two days, SIFE-UVG helped Nourish members tour the beautiful parks and landmarks of Guatemala, such as Lake Atitlan.
The students felt extremely welcomed by the project managers and the women with whom they were working. Our chapter still receives updates on the project’s progress from SIFE-UVG.
In order to ensure the project’s sustainability from the beginning, the work for Nourish did not end when our students returned from Guatemala. Our members continued to put in countless hours of work until mid-August of 2009, finalizing the project in preparation for the final implementation.
We are happy to say that the project has been successful since it’s implementation, and the women in El Jicaro are experiencing higher profits. The improvements in their business have made the women financially independent as they now have everything required to make their business flourish. SIFE-UVG hopes that the group will teach other women the same skills they learned from Nourish and propagate the sustainable development.
In order to ensure the project’s sustainability from the beginning, the work for Nourish did not end when our students returned from Guatemala. Our members continued to put in countless hours of work until mid-August of 2009, finalizing the project in preparation for the final implementation.
We are happy to say that the project has been successful since it’s implementation, and the women in El Jicaro are experiencing higher profits. The improvements in their business have made the women financially independent as they now have everything required to make their business flourish. SIFE-UVG hopes that the group will teach other women the same skills they learned from Nourish and propagate the sustainable development.