Daniel Genest Appointed VP of Philanthropy

Opportunity International Canada is pleased to welcome Daniel Genest to the leadership team in the role of VP, Philanthropy, effective January 17, 2022. Based in Calgary, Daniel brings solid and strategic fundraising experience that will build on past successes and further expand our mission of providing access to financial services, training and mentoring, life-saving healthcare and quality education bringing about lasting change in the lives of those living in poverty.

Daniel has a passion for serving people living in poverty around the world. Having served most recently as a member of Wycliffe Bible Translators’ leadership team, he sees his role with Opportunity International Canada as an extension of his previous involvement in global outreach and development. Responding to Jesus’ call to love and serve the poor, Daniel has a desire to see women and children, families and entire communities transformed and provided with better economic prospects, dignity, and hope for the future. He loves people and looks forward to serving our faithful and generous financial partners and volunteers. 

As a registered charity, Opportunity International Canada’s vision is a world in which all people have the opportunity to achieve a life free from poverty, with dignity and purpose. Through financial inclusion and training, we empower people living in poverty to transform their lives, their children’s futures and their communities through sustainable enterprise development and education.

The conference was attended by several key figures including representatives from the Bank of Ghana, Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Global Affairs Canada, Ministry of Finance, Ghana Association of Savings and Loans Companies, Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network, Association of Financial Non-Governmental Organizations, Ghana Enterprise Agency, Sinapi Aba Savings and Loans, Inc., Opportunity International Canada and Members of the Press.    

Presentations on the approach and learnings from this innovative project were delivered by Implementing Partners, Sinapi Aba Savings and Loans, Inc. and Opportunity International Canada. Mr. Ismail Adam, Deputy Director, Banking Supervision Department, Bank of Ghana, remarked “SMEs, particularly women-led SMEs, face several challenges to start and build a business including unwritten social and cultural norms, lack of awareness about legal rights, lack of economic and training opportunities among other constraints. My expectation is that your deliberations this morning will highlight some of these constraints to inform policy making.” The event concluded with a lunch and networking event.

Contributing to the advancement of women’s rights, gender equality, and empowerment of women in Ghana, this Project increased access to formal financing, created business-to-business linkages and networking opportunities for SMEs in Ghana, with a focus on small SMEs, women and vulnerable groups. Women entrepreneurs were encouraged to innovate and grow their businesses and deliver results on economic growth.

ABOUT THE PARTNERS

Sinapi Aba was founded in 1994 and for the past 28 years has been actively championing financial inclusion and financial empowerment in Ghana; serving low-income entrepreneurs and individuals by providing them with access to holistic financial services through innovative programmes, products and services which have earned the institution various local and international accolades. Sinapi Aba has 44 branches across the country with a client base of over 450,000. In 2020, SASL won the Gold Medal from the Global SME Finance Forum as the Best Bank for Women Entrepreneurs. And in 2022, SASL won the Socially Responsible Institution Award and Most Gender Focused MFI Award from Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network and The Financial Inclusion Advocacy Centre. Discover more at sinapiaba.com

Opportunity International Canada is a Canadian non-profit organization that empowers families to leave poverty behind for good. It provides financial products, services and training along their paths toward new lives filled with strength, hope, and resilience. Opportunity International Canada is part of the Opportunity Network, founded in 1971, which currently provides loans, savings programs, insurance and other financial services and training to more than 7 million loan clients and 14 million savings clients over 30 countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe. Discover more at opportunityinternational.ca