Continuing this short blog series where l am exploring what financial inclusion looks like in practice in the field, journey with me to Kumasi, Ghana.
Located in central Ghana, Kumasi is the hereditary home of the Ashanti Kingdom. It is also the headquarters of Sinapi Aba Savings and Loans (SASL), one of our Implementing Partners in Ghana.
Approaching the building we can already hear the music. Entering the back of the auditorium we are completely swept up in the energy and joy of 300 women singing and dancing.
This is a graduation ceremony for almost 200 women along with their 100 mentors – the third Cohort in SASL’s innovative Women’s Mentorship Program.
And what a celebration it is, with a Nana (Queen Mother) from the Royal Household in attendance giving her inspiration and blessing, along with remarks and words of encouragement from various VIPs.
Graduation certificates are given out, and there is a cake, more singing and dancing, a group photo, myriads of selfies and a lunch. The graduates have come from across the country. For many of them, this is their first graduation ceremony of any sort. And the celebration is well earned.
The mentees are emerging entrepreneurs, women struggling to grow a small micro-enterprise into something sustainable, that provides for their family and perhaps even creates one or more jobs for their neighbours.
Mentoring for business success is not readily available for women here, especially those at the bottom of the economic ladder without assets, formal education or a network.
And yet, such mentoring and networks are proven to be effective in business success.
At Opportunity International Canada we are passionate about finding ways to include the marginalized who are often trapped in cycles of poverty.
We are also keen to find ways to help grow micro-enterprises to help create jobs — because not everyone is an entrepreneur, but everyone needs a job.
In SASL’s program, two emerging women entrepreneurs are paired with a successful entrepreneur, mostly women but with the occasional incredibly supportive man as well.
They spend a year working through a comprehensive and practical curriculum to learn and apply new skills to help them run a more effective business — such as bookkeeping, hiring, fraud control, and sales and marketing.
Once the program is complete the women retain their network so that the mentoring continues informally. And many of the graduates become mentors themselves, thus paying it forward to future cohorts.
Opportunity International Canada will support this innovative program going forward because its impact is real and sustainable, helping women gain the confidence and skills needed for business success.
Opportunity International Canada will support this innovative program going forward because its impact is real and sustainable, helping women gain the confidence and skills needed for business success.
SASL’s Women’s Mentorship Program is unique in Western Africa and an excellent example of what financial inclusion looks like in practice.
Dan Murray, CEO